Infinity DxD
by mslmob12
Summary: An American student of Kuoh Academy has a special power that rivals even the most powerful beings in the entire supernatural world. This is his story. (Strong, eventual OP OC) I DON'T OWN ANYTHING! JUST MY OC!
1. Chapter 1: Enter Sean Harris

**After seeing Infinity War and Endgame trailer, I wanted to write a fic with the Infinity Gauntlet and the only anime that came to mind that it would fit in was DxD. I haven't seen this show in years and it's a lot more ecchi than I remember. Anyway, I decided to make this fic and I will be doing this story along with Same Dream, New Life. I'll work on them both, working solely on one story per session. One day SDNL and the next Infinity DxD. Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy it!**

**Chapter 1: Enter Sean Harris**

Kuoh Academy. An all-girls school that was made co-ed just a few years ago. It was his second year here after coming to Japan two years back. He made sure that he didn't draw any unwanted attention to himself, but that plan was blown out the window on the account of him being from America. Apparently, being foreign was a huge draw for the locals. Especially the girls, which spurred a lot of hatred from the guys.

Which leads us to now. A teenage boy was trying to find a nice quiet and shady spot to take a nap, so he could unwind from all the constant questions and advances from the girls and the hate-filled glares and curses from the guys. Jesus, is this how Kiba Yuuto feels all the time? He didn't understand how he can just play them off like nothing. The boy felt like he was gonna lose his mind if he heard just one more "Are you doing anything after school?" or "Go and die, you foreign bastard!". That last one sounded more xenophobic than jealous to him.

He found a tree that cast the right amount of shade to get some shuteye. He took his backpack off his back and placed it next to him. His eyelids started feeling heavier and heavier until they finally closed. Sadly, The Sandman couldn't visit him soon enough.

"Move it, guys! I wanna look too!"

Dammit, why here? Why now?

He opened his right eye and turned to see three guys. Two of them bent over with their faces planted against a wall of, from what he could remember of the layout of this school, the girls' dressing room and a third one angrily yelling at his friends for what ever reason. He got up, picked his backpack up, threw it over his shoulder, and stealthily got closer and let a long, silent sigh. Why was he not surprised? He strolled out of his hiding place and approached them.

"Up to your perverted antics again, I see.", he called out, announcing his presence.

They all stiffened in shock of being found out. The two stood up and faced the boy while the third simply turned around to do the same.

And when they turned to see the source of the voice, they saw a guy who was a little taller than any of them with short dark brown hair and wore round-edged rectangular framed glasses over his blue eyes. He was also wearing the boy's school uniform, consisting of a black blazer with a long-sleeved white shirt, black pants and while you normally wear brown dress shoes, he went with brown boots. He didn't even bother with the tie. Felt like the damn thing would choke him to death, if he wore it long enough. This was Sean Harris.

The first of the two guys on the left had a shaved head and the one on the right had glasses. Sean never really bothered to remember their names, but the third guy he could remember. He was of average height with spiky brown hair, similarly colored eyes and wore the school uniform. Though he wore a red T-shirt and blue/white sneakers, instead of the usual white long-sleeved shirt and brown dress shoes. He also didn't wear the tie that also came with the ensemble, like Sean. His name was Issei Hyoudou. And Sean had the unfortunate luck of being in the same class as him.

These guys made up the infamous Perverted Trio. The guys who were proud of their depraved actions and blatant declarations of having their own harems. It's kinda sad, really. But it always pissed Sean off on how immature they were on their view of sexual relationships.

"Harris! What are you doing here, you ladykilling foreign bastard?!", Issei softly yelled, not wanting to give away their position.

"Well, Hyoudou. If you must know, I was trying to take a nap over there in the trees, when I heard someone yelling about looking through something. I should've known you guys were involved.", Sean said in an equally soft tone. He didn't want to get caught and be lumped in with these pervs.

"So what? It's not wrong to want to check out hot girls!", the shaven headed guy said.

"Besides, we don't have the advantages that you and Kiba Yuuto have! Good looks, popularity, and smarts, all wrapped in one! You don't have to work hard to get close to girls!", the glasses wearing guy added.

"I didn't ask for that kind of attention! In fact, they're kind of annoying.", Sean countered.

"That's even worse! You would reject a gift like that?! What kinda man are you?!", Issei faintly screamed. He couldn't wrap his head around what Sean just said. How could a guy with all the girls in the school fawning over him not realize how lucky he was? Sean sighed wearily. There was no talking to these guys about decency. Therefore, they must be punished.

"You know what? I'm done.", Sean said with a sense of finality. He moved his backpack in front of him and unzipped it. Reaching inside, he pulled out an air horn. The lechers' faces went white and started pouring down sweat as they saw the noisemaker in his hand.

"No! You wouldn't!", Glasses said fearfully.

"Come on, guys. This is me we're talking about.", Sean deadpanned. He had, on occasion, ratted out The Perverted Trio more than once. Even gotten some thanks from the girls they were peeping on at times. Though, if he was being honest, he mostly did it to see the girls beat the ever-loving shit out of them. It was always good for a laugh. Last time, he even brought a bag of chips to eat while he watched.

"Please don't! I don't wanna die!", Issei pleaded with his hands pressed together, praying that he didn't use it.

Sean smiled maliciously as he raised his arm that held the air horn up in the air. "Then you should've been quieter." With that, he pressed his finger on the button.

**BLAAAAAAAARRRRRRRREEEEEE**

The loud noise of the air horn caused the Perverted Trio to cover their ears in pain. Sean, with only one hand, just winced at the auditory assault he dished out.

"What was that?", a feminine voice said.

"Run for it!", Baldy cried out.

The two perverts, whose names he couldn't remember, made a break for it at the sound of doom coming from the other side of the wall behind them. Too bad for Issei, they pushed him aside and wound up on the ground.

"OW! Dammit! Some friends you guys are!", Issei said with contempt.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

Issei stiffened yet again at his position being exposed. Only this time, he was shaking like a leaf. He slowly turned around and saw Hell, in the form six angry girls in Kendo uniforms, wielding bamboo swords. The leaders of whom were the pair closest to him. The one on Issei's right had brown hair tied in a ponytail with green eyes glaring at Issei. The one on his left had pink, shoulder length hair with a white hairband and red eyes with just as much hate in her eyes as the girl beside her. Their respective names are Murayama and Katase.

"You really don't know when to quit, do you Hyoudou?", Murayama said as she tapped her bamboo sword on her palm.

"Guess we'll have to make you hurt double from last time, won't we?", Katase added.

"Wait! What about Harris? He was here too!", Issei quickly said as he waved his arms in front of him. No way he was taking the fall for this alone!

"Harris? What are you talking about?", Murayama asked, confused.

"What do you mean? He's right the-"

Issei was pointing at the now empty space where a dotted outline of Harris was flashing. At his absence, Issei now knew that he was screwed.

"Please don't hurt me!", Issei begged. But it was all for naught.

"YOU PERVERT!", the Kendo team shouted at him as they enacted righteous female justice on the lechering second-year.

**XXXXX**

Among the trees, far enough away to not be spotted but close enough to see the beatdown, Sean snickered at the savagery of the Kendo Club as they mercilessly whaled on Issei within an inch of his life. You gotta love it when karma catches up to some people.

**_"_****_What you did back there was foolish.", _**a stern male voice spoke inside Sean's thoughts. **_"Using your powers like that in front of humans and with Devils nearby no less!"_**

Sean sighed at the internal lecture he was given. _"What? You expected me to stay and get beaten up over something I didn't do or wasn't even a part of?", _He argued at the voice in his head.

**_"_****_He does have a point, though."_**, another male voice said. This one was calmer and more reserved with a methodical tone to it. **_"It was reckless of you to do that."_**

_"__Even if they were watching, you guys told me about the Devils right from the get-go. If they wanted to approach me, they would done it a long time ago."_, Sean countered.

**_"_****_Don't misinterpret patience with negligence."_**, a third male voice with an air of timeless wisdom around it, added.**_ "Devils can be very conniving. They could be waiting for you to slip up. And when you do, they'll strike!"_**

**_"_****_Oh, go easy on him."_**, a silky female voice joined. Her voice had a sensual maturity to it. **_"At least he helped those poor, unsuspecting girls from being objectified by those perverts. That has to count for something."_**

**_"_****_Yeah!"_**, a second female voice said. She had a harsh tone to her voice just thinking about the Trio's actions.**_ "Those sickos deserved what they got! I only wish I could help beat up those depraved brats!"_**

**_"_****_I only wish I could've seen through that peephole a bit."_**, a fourth male voice. He had a laidback tone with a tinge of disappointment to it. **_"This is one of the reasons why I hate being stuck in here! I can't do anything I want to do!"_**

**_"_****_You asshole!"_**, the second female voice yelled. **_"You're just as bad as they are! No, you're worse than them! You're married, you know!"_**

**_"_****_That doesn't mean I can't admire what I see."_**, the fourth male voice replied.

**_"_****_You're supposed to admire your wife!"_**, the second female voice retorted.

**_"_****_Enough. The both of you. You're giving me a headache."_**, a fifth male voice ordered the previous two. His voice was deeper than the first male voice and his tone was grave, like death was certain to anyone who heard it.

**_"_****_He started it with his creepiness!"_**, the second female voice yelled.

_"__SHUT UP ALREADY! I'M THE ONE GETTING A HEADACHE!"_, Sean mentally silenced the other voices. He rubbed his forehead to alleviate some of the pain and stress. He groaned as the voices stopped.

The beating by the Kendo Team ended and Issei was left a bruised and slightly bloody mess. Sean didn't give him a second glance as he left to go back to class, his opportunity to nap having passed.

What Sean didn't notice was a small girl with white hair in a bob cut with two large bangs framing her face and several loose bangs covering her forehead with a black cat hairpin in it. She wore the girl's Kuoh Academy uniform which had a white long-sleeved, button down shirt with vertical linings, a black ribbon around the collar, a matching button-down corset and a magenta skirt with white accents. There was also a black shoulder cape, but she didn't wear one. She had yellow eyes that were looking towards the boy who alerted the Kendo Club to the perverts' presence. This action made her respect her senior as well as hearing some of the other times he has done this. She continued to watch him leave as she was eating a chocolate bar. After seeing him leave her line of sight, the girl walked away while finishing the last of her treat.

**XXXXX**

"I can't believe that tool got us caught again!", Issei angrily said.

The Perverted Trio retreated far away from the vengeful Kendo Club, licking their wounds from another failed peeping session ruined by the American foreign student.

"I don't get it! No matter where we go, he always seems to be where we are! How does he do it?", Baldy asked with frustration.

"No idea, Matsuda. Maybe it's all just coincidence. He did say he was trying to take a nap in the trees near us.", Glasses reasoned.

"Yeah right, Motohama! There's no way that guy keeps finding us without knowing! No one's that lucky!", Matsuda countered.

"It doesn't matter! Whether it's coincidence or planning, I won't let that asshole stop me from checking out the curves of all the hot chicks in the school!", Issei declares with prideful determination.

"YEAH!", Matsuda and Motohama cheered, their spirits reinvigored.

"But before that, you motherfuckers totally left me behind and I got my ass beaten for looking through a tithole I didn't even get to look through because of-", Issei ranted but stopped when he felt someone watching him.

He and the other two looked up and saw Heaven. A beautiful, buxom redhead was looking down at the Trio through a second-floor window. But a few seconds after they saw her, she went back inside, out of sight.

"Did you guys see that? Her sugar has _got _to be sweet!", Matsuda commented.

"Yeah and that red hair is something else.", Issei replied, satisfied with a glimpse of the redhead.

"Her name is Rias Gremory.", Motohama said as he adjusted his glasses. "99-58-90. She's President of the Occult Research Club. From what I've heard, she's from Northern Europe."

Issei just kept looking at the window that Rias Gremory was in. He only saw her once for a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity. Normally, he would've went to the next girl to ogle. But this was different. He just couldn't get the beautiful redhead out of his mind.

**XXXXX**

Inside the same second-story window, Rias Gremory sat on a couch with her arms crossed under her large bust, staring at a chessboard with the black and white pieces scattered across it, though there were additional pieces, but they were red and seemingly glowing. Rias herself had a height of 172 cm with flawless white skin, blue-green eyes, and thigh-length hair as red as blood with a single hair strand or "ahoge" sticking out from the top of her head. She wore the girl's Kuoh Academy uniform.

Behind her stood another girl that wore the same outfit. She was a beautiful young woman with an equally voluptuous figure as Rias, if not slightly more. She had a very long black ponytail that reached all the way to her legs with two strands sticking out from the top and sloping backward, all tied together with an orange ribbon.

"Who was that boy?", Rias asked to the ravenette girl.

"What boy?", the black-haired girl replied.

"The brown haired one in the middle.", Rias answered.

The ravenette looked up in thought. "Oh, he's a second-year in Class 2-B. I think his name is Issei Hyoudou.", she said. "Why? What made you ask that?"

Rias placed her hand under her bottom lip while looking at the chessboard, in thought. "No reason. I just wanted to know if you knew him is all.", she told her friend. As she did, Rias move a white pawn forward on the chess board. "Checkmate." At that, she got off the couch as her ravenette friend looked over the board and saw that it was indeed checkmate.

"Aww.", she softly groaned in disappointment.

"Your trap was too obvious.", Rias pointed out as she started to remove her clothes. When she finished, she walked into an adjacent room and a metallic squeak was heard as well as the sound of running water from a shower.

A few minutes later, a door opened from the other side of the room. The little girl that was watching Sean came inside. She walked over and sat down on one of the couches in the middle. She took out a candy bar, peeled off half of the wrapper and started to eat. The black-haired girl saw the girl and smiled.

"Hello, Koneko.", she greeted.

"Hey, Akeno.", she greeted back monotonously.

Akeno walked over the other room where Rias was and knocked on the door.

"Rias, Koneko's back.", Akeno informed her friend.

"Thank you, Akeno. I'm almost done. I'll be out soon.", Rias said as she turned the shower off while Akeno went to get her a change of clothes. Akeno placed Rias' new clothes inside and left to wait with her white-haired junior. A few moments later, Rias walked out wearing a different school uniform and went to sit at her desk.

"Hello Koneko. Do you have anything to report?", Rias asked her friend.

Koneko gave a single nod as she told her what she saw during Harris' encounter with The Perverted Trio. "I was keeping an eye on him. He was trying to find a place to nap when we both heard some noise nearby. Harris walked over to check it out and that those perverts were peeping inside the girls' locker room again. He confronted them and they got into an argument about his popularity. Afterwards, Harris pulled out an air horn out of his backpack and used it to give away the perverts' location."

"That explains that noise from earlier.", Rias added.

"Yes, but what happened after that was the most important thing. Two of the perverts ran away leaving their friend behind and the Kendo Club caught him. It was Hyoudou. He tried to get Harris in trouble too; but before the Kendo Club caught them, Harris disappeared, and a tree branch was on the ground in his place."

Rias and Akeno were slightly surprised at this information. They didn't sense anything abnormal about the American student. But from what Koneko just said, it seemed like he had some sort of latent power inside him.

"Well, that's very interesting.", Rias shared her thoughts.

"What would you like to do about him?", Akeno asked Rias.

"Hmm, I want to see if he has any other surprises for us. Akeno, tell Kiba to keep an eye on Harris."

"Yes, Miss President.", Akeno replied with a small bow and left the room.

"Koneko, you probably won't like it, but I want you to keep an eye on Issei Hyoudou for me.", Rias told her. Koneko simply gave her a single nod and followed Akeno shortly after.

After the other two girls left her, Rias sat at her desk with her hands clasped in her face and elbows on the table. She then thought of the two boys that were the center of her earlier conversation. She looked at the finished game of chess on the table in the middle of the room. More specifically, the red glowing pieces. Eight pawns, one knight, one rook, and one bishop.

**XXXXX**

Sean left the school after the final bell. Not before more fangirls tried asking him out for the millionth time. Though, thinking back at watching Issei getting his ass beat by the Kendo Club, it wasn't all bad.

He put in his earbuds that were connected to his phone. He always listened to music when he walked, made the time pass by faster. He decided to listen to "Drown" by Bring Me the Horizon.

_"__What doesn't kill you,_

_Makes you wish you were dead._

_Got a hole in my soul growing_

_Deeper and deeper"_

As he listened to those lyrics, he thought back to his life in America. Growing up there, he was always bullied. When he asked them why, all they said was "Because I can". He wanted to do something about it; but when he tried, the bullying just got worse. From slapping his books out of his hands to straight up beatdowns, outside of home, he never knew a moment's peace. Inside of home wasn't any better either. His dad was narcissistic, always thinking he was right and saying that a conversation either happened or didn't happen based on the talk. No matter what he said or even knew that if something happened or not, his dad would never admit he was wrong.

Sean tried calling him out on his bullshit, but his father didn't want to hear it and kicked him out on the street a few times. There was even a time where he couldn't go back home for a few days. But his father always brought him back, thinking that his "impudence" had ended. He just didn't argue with him anymore.

The only regret he had about leaving America was leaving his mother behind. He wanted to take her with him, but she gave up on resisting the pompous attitude of her husband long ago. He always expected her to pay him for some reason or another for different things, even if she didn't have a job. And every time she tried to do something to gain a bit of independence, her husband would sabotage her at every turn. Eventually, she threw in the towel and resorted to drinking to numb the stress and frustration of dealing with him.

He always wanted to visit Japan. He probably didn't have to cross the ocean to get away from his father, but after seeing everything that came from the Asian country, he wanted to see it firsthand. So, when he got there, he studied the language and memorized it and everything else he needed to know to fully integrate himself in as little as a few days.

Sean arrived at his one-bedroom apartment. It wasn't anything extravagant, but it felt like home. It wasn't very big either, the living room and kitchen were right next to each other with no doors or walls separating them. In the living room was a three-seat couch in case he had company, which wasn't very often, but you never know. A coffee table as that's length was as long as the couch, and a 43'' TV with a PS4 connected to it. The kitchen had a small fridge with a stove, a microwave, and a short counter coming from the wall. Sean went to his bedroom. It had a full-sized bed, a dresser for his clothes, and a bookshelf filled with different genres of fiction books, comics, and manga. He skimmed through his collection and took out a comic book. He went back to the couch in the living room, lied down on his back and started reading it.

**_"_****_You should start on your homework before doing recreational activities."_**, the calm male voice in his head from earlier today said.

_"__That can be done anytime today."_, Sean mentally replied.

**_"_****_So can what you're doing now. Except that can be done at any time on any day while your homework is due tomorrow."_**, the voice countered.

_"__Ugh, I just got back home! At least let me have like half an hour doing what I _want _to do before doing what I _have_ to do."_, Sean complained.

**_"_****_No, he's right."_**, the stern male voice added. **_"It's your duty as a student to complete all of your work, that includes homework. Besides, I doubt you would want another visit from the Shitori girl."_**

Souna Shitori. That was a name that annoyed him almost as much as The Perverted Trio. Sometimes when he tried to take a nap outside, she would find him in one of her strolls during classes. I guess being Student Council President has its advantages. It's also part of the reason he tried to find secluded spots to avoid another lecture on how he should set a better example as one of the top ten students in the entire academy. Well, on the plus side, she wasn't another fangirl asking him out.

_"__Dammit, fine."_, Sean conceded. He set the comic down on the table as he got his backpack and took out his textbooks to get started on the dreaded homework. Despite his grades, he was always bothered by the constant need to do this menial task. He just wanted to throw it all in the garbage and just forget about it all.

**_"_****_I don't know why you're complaining. With your intelligence, you could fly through this stuff and be done in like ten minutes."_**, the harsh female voice said in a calmer tone from before.

_"__It's just annoying, like those little steps you take in doing some simple tasks. It's not hard, just inconvenient."_, Sean explained.

**_"_****_Even if it is, it's better to get things like that out of the way instead of putting them off."_**, the wise male voice said.

_"__Says the guy with all the time in the world."_, Sean quipped.

**_"_****_Don't get smart with me, brat. Just do your work and you'll have the rest of the day reading your dreck of literature."_**, the voice said.

_"__It's not dreck! It's a great piece of imagination and it was the only thing that made life back with my dad tolerable!"_, Sean argued. No one insulted his comics. The voice didn't reply as he hit a nerve when it came to Sean. Saying anything that involved him remembering his bastard of a father or the state of his mother was not a line you wanted to cross with him.

About ten minutes later, Sean finished his homework. He stored his homework inside his textbook, placed it in his backpack and picked up the comic from the table. It was about a villain with an almighty golden glove adorned with six different colored jewels. Five on the first knuckle of each finger and one placed on the center of the back of its hand. Sean chuckled at the likeness of the glove as he summoned one on his left arm that looked identical to the one on the comic's cover.

_"__Truth really is stranger than fiction, huh guys?"_, Sean asked the voices in his head. And they all agreed in their own ways.

**_"_****_Indeed."_**, the stern male voice.

**_"_****_Yes, it is."_**, the methodical male voice.

**_ "_****_Truer words were never spoken."_**, the wise male voice.

**_"_****_You know it."_**, the sensual female voice.

**_"_****_You got that right."_**, the disappointed now casual male voice.

**_"_****_Yep."_**, the calmer yet harsh female voice.

**_"_****_Hmm."_**, the grave male voice.

**XXXXX**

The next day, Sean walked to school with his earbuds in. This time, he listened to "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen. Sean listened to whatever he liked, mostly rock, country, and a little hip-hop. Although he did listen to newer music, he also liked to hear the classics. After all, you can't really appreciate what you have now without appreciating where it came from.

Sean soon arrived at the school gate. He took off his earbuds, wrapped them up and stored them in his pocket. But when he got to the gate, he saw something he never expected: Issei Hyoudou walking shoulder to shoulder with a girl he didn't recognize. And a gorgeous one at that. The pervert walked up to his friends whose eyes whited out and their jaws were open so wide, they could've smashed through the concrete. Honestly, Sean didn't blame them. Issei then introduced the girl to his friends.

"Guys, this is Yuuma Amano. My girlfriend.", Issei said with an arm gesture of presentation to the girl. He went to the guys and did the same to them. "And these are my good buds, Matsuda and Motohama."

Yuuma just gave a friendly smile to the pair of lechers. "It's nice to meet you."

Issei turned to Matsuda and placed a hand on his shoulder with a cocky expression on his face. "And here's the best part, dudes. She… asked… me." As Sean heard that, he started to get worried. That alone sent red flags. Even if the girl wasn't from this school, she had to have known Issei's perverted nature. The guy wasn't exactly shy about it. Something has _got_ to be up.

Sean decided to find out for himself what was going on. He walked up to the group and made himself known.

"Morning guys! Hope you're not getting into trouble like yesterday.", Sean said, trying to be cordial.

Matsuda snapped himself out of his shocked stupor of betrayal and got angry. "That was only because of you!", he yelled furiously while pointing his finger at the American.

"What can I say? With all the crap that I hear about what the three of you do on a daily basis, someone's gotta do something about it.", Sean flippantly argued.

He ignored the pervert's silent rage as he turned to Issei and Yuuma.

"Well, well, Issei. I honestly never thought I would see the day when you got a girlfriend. Maybe there's hope for you yet.", Sean said with mock surprise.

"Whatever! How about you go cry in a corner about how I got a girlfriend before you did?", Issei gloated. It was a little irritating that he actually flaunted his "girlfriend" to Sean.

"I guess that depends on your priorities." Sean shrugged off. Issei was too happy about Yuuma to be angry about Sean's remark.

"Sorry. I didn't even introduce myself.", Sean apologized. He always tried to display good manners to new people. Unless you gave him a reason not to. "I'm Sean Harris. Nice to meet you.", He introduced himself to Yuuma. Now he got a better look at her, she had a slender body with a large bust, hip-length silky black hair and violet eyes. She also wore a school uniform, different from Kuoh's. It consisted of a dark red jacket with the letter "P" embroidered in gold, a white undershirt, a red bow, and a green skirt with a thin white strip around the lower end of it.

Yuuma gave the same friendly smile to Sean, but, up close, he could tell that it was fake. "Same to you!", she cheerfully said. She had a hint of something in her eyes when she looked at Sean. Did she sense his power? Was she suspicious?

**_"_****_Careful, Sean. That girl is a Fallen Angel."_**, the sensual female voice told him.

_"__A Fallen Angel?"_, he asked in surprise.

**_"_****_Yes. She's in disguise but there's no mistaking the energy she has. It feels like subpar Holy energy."_**, she replied.

_"__I don't get it. Why would a Fallen Angel want to be near Issei?"_, he wondered.

**_"_****_Because I also sense a bit of power from the boy as well. Though, I can't tell what exactly. Only that it is strong."_**, she answered.

Sean heeded the voice's words of caution and kept his guard up in case the Fallen Angel tried to do anything malicious.

"Anyway, I need to get to class. I really don't want the Class Prez on my ass again.", Sean said, breaking away from the group. "See ya, guys! And stay out of trouble!", he called out to them as he went inside the campus.

"Hey, maybe if you guys stop jacking off, you'll get one too.", Issei said to his depraved friends. Real classy, though probably not far from the truth. "Let's go, Yuuma.", he called out to his "girlfriend".

Yuuma didn't hear him as she saw the American walk towards the school. She couldn't stop wondering what she felt from the boy she just met.

"Yuuma? Are you OK?", Issei tried getting her attention. Yuuma snapped out of her trance.

"Oh, sorry Issei! It's nothing.", she waved off.

"Well, let's get going.", Issei said.

"OK.", Yuuma responded. The couple left the pair of perverts as they cried out, blubbering about betrayal and misery.

**XXXXX**

Sean went inside the classroom and the girls immediately started talking about him. Sean ignored all the gossip and took his seat. Class didn't start for another few minutes, so he decided to read the comic he tried to finish last night. Although he read it numerous times, it was his favorite. Not only because he had something in common with the book, but he always enjoyed reading about heroes.

The door opened and everyone went nuts, more so than when Sean entered the door. He didn't bother looking up from his comic to see who came in. Through the noise of the other students, Sean heard footsteps approaching him.

"I see you're actually in class this time.", an authoritative voice said to him.

Finally looking up from his reading material, Sean saw a bespectacled girl with a slim figure, black bob cut-styled hair, and violet eyes. She wore the standard Kuoh Academy girl's uniform. She had a posture of elegance and discipline that she carried no matter what she was doing. Sean doubted that she even knew the definition of the word "relax".

"Oh, Souna. Yep, I'm here in class and on time. Miracles really can happen, huh?", Sean facetiously said to her. Sean never got along with authority figures ever due to the relationship he had with his father. He figured that those who stood above others thought they could do whatever they wanted without consequence. Souna's eyes narrowed at his tone.

"You should be taking your high school career more seriously. If you keep missing classes, your grades will inevitably drop and so will your chances at leading a successful life.", Souna chided the American.

"That's not entirely true. People could spend their entire school careers worrying about grades and never being able to get anywhere in life. Education may give you the tools to be successful, but at the end of the day, if you don't have the connections to make it happen, you'll just be nothing but an educated failure.", Sean argued. Souna wasn't too appreciative to this kind of talk. He made it sound like everything the students here did was all pointless. Not wanting to argue with him about this topic, she chose to change the subject.

"I heard from the Kendo Club yesterday about a loud noise, as well as Issei Hyoudou peeping on them again. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?", She asked while adjusting her glasses.

"Yeah, that was me. The Perverted Trio disturbed me from a nap I was trying to take. I noticed they were doing what they always do, so I decided to get revenge. And if that means doing your job for you, then you're welcome.", Sean admitted. Souna, while still not appreciating his flippant tone, she did admire his actions against the The Perverted Trio. A small smirk grew on her face as she thought of something else.

"You know, I was thinking of making a Disciplinary Committee, if you're interested.", Souna offered.

"As much as I would like to do stuff like that officially, I must refuse. While I am flattered that you'd offer me something like that, it should be everyone's job to make a place feel safe. No one person should shoulder the responsibility of keeping a populace safe. If I did accept, I could get more like-minded members with me. But it should be a community's job to protect itself, just like a person is responsible for their own safety.", Sean spoke. Everyone stared in respect at his speech, even Souna.

"Very well.", Souna acknowledged with her head down in acceptance. "Though should you ever change your mind, the offer still stands.", with that she turned and left the room. A few moments later, the teacher came through the door and class officially began.

**XXXXX**

Sean decided to walk through town, listening to the Motorhead cover of "Sympathy for the Devil" originally by The Rolling Stones. School ended without any incident, not even The Perverted Trio, or should it be Duo, was causing trouble. Guess Issei having a girlfriend cause them to lose their spirit, at least for now.

That thought led Sean to his concerns from earlier. Why was a Fallen Angel hanging around Issei? And that power one of the voices mentioned, what could that be? What would the Fallen Angels want with it? Distracted with his inner thoughts, Sean felt a tapping on his shoulder. He turned to see a woman in what looked like a bat-themed cosplay maid outfit. Sean paused his music and took out his earbuds.

"Yes? Can I help you?", he asked her.

"Oh no, I just wanted to give you this flyer.", the maid said as she passed a flyer she got from her bag to Sean. As soon as she did, she turned and left.

"Wonder what that was about.", Sean said to himself. He looked that the flyer he was given and saw a strange circular design on it with the words "Your wish will be granted" on it. Strange piece of paper from a strange woman.

**_"_****_That was no woman."_**, the sensual voice from before suddenly said in his head.

_"__What now?"_, Sean mentally asked.

**_"_****_She had the aura of a Devil, but isn't an actual Devil. Most likely the familiar of one."_**, the voice answered.

_"__So why give me this?"_, Sean wondered.

**_"_****_I suggest throwing that away. The design on that flyer represents the seal of Gremory, a noble Devil household."_**, the calm voice explained.

_"__What, like Rias Gremory?"_, Sean questioned._ "If she _is _a Devil, then she's not really hiding it at all, is she?"_

**_"_****_No, she's not."_**, the voice agreed.

After the mental talk, Sean found the nearest garbage can, threw away the Devil's flyer and went on his way. The bat-maid from before noticed his disposal of the flyer and decided to leave as well.

**XXXXX**

The sun was beginning to set as Sean made his way home. Nothing really happened after the flyer thing, he just went down to a fast food place to get some dinner. He was now listening to "Fallen Angels" by Black Veil Brides. His choice of music was somewhat influenced by Yuuma. He just couldn't get the situation with her and Issei out of his head. What could Issei have that the Fallen Angels want? Maybe he had something like what Sean had. It's the only thing that he could come up with. Though he didn't think that Issei would have something like that at all. Then again, beggars can't be choosers.

Sean looked at his phone and the battery was down to its last ten percent of power. He turned it off and walked the rest of the way in silence.

At least, he thought he was going to.

**_"_****_SEAN, INCOMING!"_**, the sensual voice hastily yelled. Sean held his head in pain at the volume of the mental warning he received.

_"__Dammit! What?! What's coming?!"_, Sean inwardly yelled.

"Out for an evening stroll, are we?", an arrogant female voice called out.

Sean looked around the area for the source until he noticed something strange in front of him. A single black feather floating down from the sky. He looked up and saw a feminine form with black wings flying above him, silhouetted by the setting sun. She landed a couple feet away from him and Sean could see her clearly. She was a tall and buxom woman with long, navy blue hair that hid her right eye while seeing that her glaring left one was brown. She wore a maroon, trench coat-like top with a wide collar that showcased her generous breasts and cleavage while a gold necklace complimented it further, a matching miniskirt and black heeled shoes.

"You're the one Raynare was talking about?", the winged woman asked disbelievingly. She moved her eyes along Sean's figure, sizing him up. "Well, I'll admit you got some power in you. That's more than enough for me to kill you." With that ominous threat, she stuck her hands out and conjured a yellow spear of light.

_"__So, this is a Fallen Angel?"_, Sean thought. _"Never actually seen one before."_

**_"_****_You don't want to risk using so much of your power. You'll only make yourself a bigger target."_**, the methodical voice told Sean.

_"__Any suggestions?"_, Sean asked.

"What's wrong? Too scared to run?", the Fallen Angel wondered smugly. The human just looked at her straight in the eye. At that moment, she could've sworn his eyes changed from blue to yellow. But the change was so brief, she passed it off on the light reflecting from his glasses. "That's fine with me. Just makes this easier!"

She then flew in the air, drawing her arm holding the spear of light back and threw it at the human. The spear flew so fast that he didn't have time to dodge. It pierced him through the heart, ensuring his death in a matter of minutes. The Fallen Angel hovered in the air as her human target fell to the ground.

"Hmph! I guess you didn't even awaken your Sacred Gear at all. Oh well, too bad for you.", the Fallen Angel said, adding insult to injury. She turned her head to the side, as if looking at some far away distance. "Raynare should've killed that other human by now." She then turned her attention back to Sean. "If you want someone to blame for your situation, blame Him for the power he gave you. Also, remember the name Kalawarner as the one who killed you." After her grandiose posturing, she flew away, leaving more black feathers floating down to the ground.

Sean was left in a puddle of his own blood, coughing it up as the life-preserving liquid flooded his lungs. The light slowly leaving from his eyes as Death came to claim him.

But then he suddenly vanished in a shimmer of light, as if nothing ever happened. Leaning against one of the buildings a ways away from the "murder", Sean was there, completely unharmed.

"Jeez, what a pompous bitch.", he said to himself. He pushed himself off the building wall and continued his way back home.

**XXXXX**

On a nearby rooftop, a teenage boy witnessed the entire event. Although, it happened a bit differently. He saw the Fallen Angel approach the human, but he simply walked to the building he was previously leaning on away. The Fallen Angel didn't seem to even notice, as if he didn't even move at all. She just flew into the air and threw her spear at the ground, thinking that she killed the human. He was told to keep an eye on him in case someone would try to take him or kill him, but what he saw was far more interesting. After seeing the event pass, he summoned a red magic circle at his feet and vanished.

**Well, there's the first chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it so far! I got plenty of ideas for how this story goes and hope you'll enjoy them too! I just want to thank SlashFan2018 for his input on this story and for helping me set up how the Infinity Gauntlet could be possible in DxD! Really appreciate it, man!**

**As always, Review/Fav/Follow**

**See you all next time!**


	2. Chapter 2: Devils Walk The Earth

**It seems that there's some confusion about the Stones, so I'll clear it up right now. I'm using the MCU's coloring of the Stones. I know I used the comic for reference, but I'm more familiar with the movies than the comics. I'm shocked to see that this story had quite the reception that it did compared to my MHA story! Thank you, your support helps me keep writing! In celebartion of this outcome, I've decided to make a second chapter. Anyway, time to answer the reviews.**

**OnetimeMuffin: Hope this clears things up for you.**

**Matthew: Well, you're about to find out.**

**Demon420, ClearwingYuta, xhope14x, sonic: Thank you for you support!**

**Now let's get back to it!**

**Chapter 2: Devils Walk The Earth**

Sean made it back to his apartment complex and went up the stairs to go to his. Before reaching his door, he met up with his neighbor. He was a lanky man with glasses, dark brown hair with two chin-length bangs framing his face. He wore a solid white T-shirt, blue jeans and was in the middle of taking off his black shoes.

"Hey Morisawa.", Sean called to him.

Morisawa turned to see Sean walking toward him. When he first met Sean, he didn't really think much of him. But after he saw his game and manga collection, he figured that Sean would be a good guy to hang out with. After a while, they had a few two-player battles on their consoles and even gave different opinions on their manga.

"Harris! Had a nice day?", Morisawa asked.

"Yeah, about as nice as can be expected.", Sean answered with a so-so gesture of his hand.

"Cool. Hey, wanna come over and play some Anthem later?", Morisawa offered.

"I would, but it's been a long day. Besides, I got homework to do.", Sean politely refused.

Morisawa nodded in understanding. "Alright, well don't be a stranger.", he said and went inside his apartment.

Sean took off his own boots and went inside. He couldn't think about playing games after what happened today. Not only was he attacked by a Fallen Angel, but she also said that someone else probably killed another person.

The voices didn't talk to Sean after what happened. He figured that they would talk to him in his dreams like they do sometimes. He still couldn't believe that someone like him could have this extraordinary power! Before he got it, he always figured that nothing would never change. He would get bullied at school, his father would always try to make it seem like he and his mother were in the wrong, demoralizing them, and his mother would constantly drown her emotions in beer and vodka.

But now, there were greater forces than humans at work, not only Devils, but now Fallen Angels. Ever since the voices first spoke to him, they told Sean of the existence of the supernatural: Devils, Angels, Fallen Angels, Gods, dragons. The list went on and on. They also told him that some of these beings would try to recruit him to their ranks or kill him to prevent others from getting their hands on his power. Either way, this meant trouble for him.

After learning about these dangers, the voices trained him by relaying workout regimens in his mind. Working out with and without weights, meditation to focus his mind, training him fighting techniques inside his dreams and practicing them in reality, etc. Right now, the voices said that his strength was on par with High-class Devils. Eventually, his strength would be unparalleled at his highest potential.

After finishing his homework, Sean decided to go straight to bed. He got down to his boxers, got under the covers, and after a few minutes, he closed his eyes.

**XXXXX**

Sean opened his eyes again. But this time, he wasn't in his apartment. He was in a space that had six differently colored open rooms side-to-side with each other.

The first was colored blue. This room had different kinds of weapons, in racks and shelves. There were also gold renderings of what looked like great battle on the walls that showed warriors fighting against large humanoid creatures with a tree dividing them in the middle, a large wooden horn displayed on a table, and, in the far corner, was a stone statue of a beautiful woman dressed in armor with one of her arms raised, spear in hand while riding a winged horse with its front hooves also raised.

The second was colored purple. The room had elegant furniture that befitted a queen. A large king-sized bed with a gossamer canopy and curtains, meticulously designed wooden furniture: dressers and chairs. There was even a door that led to a closet which most likely stored a large assortment of high-cost clothing. But the most peculiar items were what looked like torture devices off to the sides with chains also decorating one wall.

The third was colored yellow. This room was basically a large library with thousands upon thousands of books that looked old. At the center of this room was a modest full-sized bed, like Sean's, an upholstered wooden chair next to a desk with a lamp on it.

The fourth was colored green. Its walls were adorned with clocks, ticking in synch with each other. The farthest wall had a large wheel of different markings that, upon closer inspection, resembled the Zodiac symbols.

The fifth was colored red. This was the most normal one. It was a simple room filled with pictures of the occupant's past. A queen-sized bed for two and a love seat. It was a room that looked like a married couple would have.

The sixth and final room was colored orange, but faded to black as you went farther down the room. It hardly had anything in it. Minimalism at its finest. The only occupying piece of furniture was a queen-sized bed.

In front of each of these rooms, seven individuals sat in thrones as if they were waiting for Sean's arrival.

The first was a light-skinned hulking man with piercing blue eyes and a long, red beard that reached to the bottom of his neck. He had a powerful presence, like a guardian protecting his people. He wore shining golden armor with a twin-horned helmet that framed his face. He sat on a golden throne with his arms crossed that made him seem like he was all work and no play. His golden throne showed a ram's head on top of it.

The second was a beautiful, fair-skinned beauty that would make any man kneel to her. She had long dark hair as black as night, enchanting purple eyes, and ruby red lips that formed a sultry smile. Her attire left little to no imagination to her figure. She wore a black corset that emphasized her large breasts, matching thong, and black knee-height high heeled leather boots. She wore a cloak of black feathers that glistened with the light surrounding the area she was in. Finally, she held a spear in her left hand. She sat on a black throne, with her legs crossed in a way that showed them off, had a design on what looked like a crow over her head.

The third was a young looking man with round glasses and pale skin, like he never saw daylight. He had slightly messy blonde hair and green eyes. Wearing a pristine white robe with a picture of a long-legged bird with an equally long, down-curved beak with its wings spread on his back. In his hand was an ancient tome that's cover looked very worn out. He sat on a white throne that had a design of scales above him.

The fourth was a older man. His hair was grey as was his beard with blue eyes that looked like he had wisdom beyond time itself. He wore a Greek-style toga that reached his ankles with straw sandals. He sat on a green throne that had what looked like a chimera on top of his. He had a harvesting scythe laid out on his lap with the blade facing toward his body, away from his host.

The fifth and sixth were a couple that wore traditional Japanese clothing. The man wore a black yukata with sliver obi wrapped around his waist and had matching zori with white tabi. He had silver hair combed neat and matching eyes that conveyed a relaxed demeanor. The woman also had silver hair that was shoulder-length with sharp red eyes. She wore a white kimono wrapped in a red obi with matching zori and white tabi. The couple had a two-seated red throne in which they sat side-by-side. The man held a sword in his right hand while the woman possessed a simple bamboo comb in her left.

The last one was a man whose age, appearance-wise, was between the third and fourth persons from before. He had dark skin with brown eyes and a well-groomed black beard. He wore a red dastar with a matching sarong wrapped around his waist and no shirt or shoes of any kind. His most distinctive feature was a disfigured left leg that had multiple scars that looked like it was once rotting. When they first met, his expression sent a chill up Sean's spine every time he saw it. But after a while, Sean learned that he was actually very compassionate. His orange throne had a buffalo design on on top of it.

These seven beings inside Sean's mind were actually gods and their souls dwell within the stones of Sean's gauntlet.

Heimdall, Norse god and former guardian of the Bifrost Bridge, in the blue Space Stone.

Morrigan, Celtic goddess of magic and war, in the purple Power Stone.

Thoth, Egyptian god of knowledge, in the yellow Mind Stone.

Chronos (not the Titan), Greek god of time, in the green Time Stone.

Izanagi and Izanami, Shinto god and goddess of creation and destruction (respectively), both housed in the red Reality Stone.

Yama, Hindi god of death and judge of souls, in the orange Soul Stone.

_**"Sean, we need to discuss what happened."**_, Heimdall said sternly wanting to get right to business.

"Yeah, I figured you all would in here.", Sean replied.

_**"We warned you that something like this would happen."**_, Thoth calmly chided.

"It was never a problem before.", Sean argued.

_**"Did you forget what I told you?"**_, Morrigan asked with her silky voice. _**"The reason no one knew of your power was because I was able to seal it from others when we came here. But when you used the Space Stone to escape from the Kendo Club, you broke the seal."**_

_**"And now that it's broken, not only do the Devils sense your power but the Fallen Angels as well."**_, Chronos finished in his wisdom. _**"You slipped up and they made their move just as I told you they would."**_

"You said the Devils would do that!", Sean countered.

_**"And they have. Right after the Fallen Angel left, Morrigan sensed a Devil's energy nearby. Most likely trying to verify your power for themselves."**_

Sean couldn't say anything in his defense. Chronos did warn him about not mistaking waiting for ignoring. And Morrigan did say when he started going to Kuoh not to use his power around the Devils. He did use his power for emergencies, but that was far enough away that it didn't give himself away. He got careless and it almost cost him his life. Sean held his head down in shame, realizing his mistake.

_**"Oh, I can't stand seeing you sad."**_, Morrigan said, feeling bad for her host. She got off her throne, walked up to Sean and hugged him to her generous bust. Ever since Sean came to Japan, feeling bad about leaving his mom behind, she adopted a motherly personality for him. Sean had a faint blush on his cheeks. He was getting a hug from an actual goddess, after all.

_**"Lucky host."**_, Izanagi jealously said earning a swift elbow to his side from his wife, Izanami.

_**"How many times do I have to tell you that you're married?! To me!"**_, Izanami angrily chided her husband.

_**"I know, I know."**_, he replied in an apologetic and carefree manner._** "But he is a lucky one! Especially with all those fangirls chasing after him!"**_, he immediately bounced back to his perverted envy, earning another punch to his stomach that caused him to hold it in pain. After which, Izanami crossed her arms and faced away from her horndog husband.

_**"Can we move this along?"**_, Yama interrupted in his grave tone.

Thoth cleared his throat at Yama's suggestion. _**"Yes. There's also something else that we must discuss. The Fallen Angel, Kalawarner, mentioned that another person, most likely another Fallen Angel, named Raynare should've killed another human."**_

Morrigan, who released her host from her embrace, went to sit back on her throne. Sean heard Thoth and nodded at his summation. "Yeah, she did say that."

_**"After thinking about it, the only explanation that I can think of is that disguised Fallen Angel you met earlier today was the one Kalawarner was talking about. And based on that logic, the only human that she would have killed was..."**_

"Issei." I finished. Sean shouldn't have been surprised about this, but he couldn't believe that his classmate was now dead. Sure, he was a pervert that would constantly peep on girls. But that didn't mean he deserved to die. Sean sat on the ground in shock at this news.

_**"It's too late to try and change the past."**_ Chronos spoke. _**"I know this is terrible news to you, but there's nothing you can do about it. All you can do now is move forward."**_

Sean didn't respond to the time god's consolation. He could've done something about this. He knew that it was dangerous being around Fallen Angels, yet he did nothing to try and help Issei. At this line of thought, he soon became depressed.

_**"He's right."**_ Izanagi said in a surprisingly serious tone. _**"There are some things even you can't do."**_

_**"Besides, even if you tried to warn him, he probably wouldn't have believed you anyway."**_ Izanami threw her two cents in.

Sean just sat there, his knees to his chest as he kept feeling guilty about the death of his classmate. He then felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Yama, kneeling before him.

_**"He may not have seemed like it, but he did have a good soul. He will find peace in the next life."**_ he solemnly said. Yama was a god of few words, but what he did say made Sean feel a bit better. After all, who better to know a person's soul than a god whose job was once to judge them?

"Thanks, Yama." Sean said with a small smile. Yama merely nodded and returned to his throne.

_**"Now that that's over with, it's time for you to wake up."**_ Heimdall mentioned.

Sean nodded at this and the room soon began to fade to black.

**XXXXX**

The next morning was not a happy one. Even after what Yama said, it still hurt knowing that someone Sean knew had died. Even if they were a shameless pervert. He listened to Gary Jules' "Mad World" as he made his way to school.

_"It really is a mad world we live in."_ Sean thought as he heard the somber lyrics.

He was so absorbed in the song, he didn't realize that he already walked past the school gate. The girls saw him in his depressed state and they all wanted to comfort him, while the guys looked on in pity as they thought that he just went through a bad break-up. Sean couldn't hear their sympathies as he kept walking past them.

He finally made it to the classroom. He realized he never turned his music off. So he took out his earbuds and stored them in his pocket. He finally took his seat and sat his head down onto his desk with his arms underneath.

"Hey Harris!"

Sean opened his eyes and looked up in confusion at the voice. He turned to see...

"Hyoudou?!"

Issei Hyoudou, alive and well.

_"What the hell?!"_ Sean thought in shock._ "How is he still alive? I thought Kalawarner said that her friend killed him."_

_**"She did. It seems like the Devils must have brought him back to life. I sense that he's one of them now."**_ Morrigan mentioned.

_"They can do that?"_ Sean questioned in awe.

_**"Yes, though if the one resurrected hasn't been dead for long. Minutes, perhaps."**_ Thoth answered.

"HARRIS!" Issei yelled, snapping Sean out of his mental conversation.

"Sorry. What were you saying?" he apologized.

"I was asking if you know Yuuma. You even talked to her. You have to remember her!" Issei frantically said.

"What do you mean?" the American wondered.

"What do you mean, 'What do you mean?' I'm talking about the girl that was here with me yesterday and Matsuda and Motohama don't remember her!" Issei incredulously argued.

_"What? How could they not remember her?"_ Sean thought in confusion.

_**"It's better if you go along with what his friends said. Fallen Angels usually erase the memories of any human they come in contact with when they finish their business."**_ Thoth suggested. Sean gave him a mental nod and turned his attention back to Issei.

"Sorry man. Don't really remember someone named 'Yuuma'." Sean said. Then a teasing smirk grew on his face. "Besides, I seriously doubt that you would ever have a girlfriend with the way you have with the ladies."

Issei got angry at the jab. "Ahh! I don't know why I even asked an asshole like you!" At that, he sat at his desk, grumbling about the American student.

Sean ignored him as class finally got started. He didn't pay attention to the lecture his teacher was giving him as he thought about Issei's survival and what it could mean when the Fallen Angels learn about it.

_"Chronos, can you let me have a little peek into the future about Issei?"_ Sean mentally asked the time god.

_**"Very well. I'll let you see into the evening, but no farther. Time is not something to frivolously meddle with."**_ Chronos compromised but accepted his request.

Sean nodded. He closed his eyes in concentration and a second later, he opened them and their color turned into a faint green. Enough for it to be negligible to any other prying eyes.

_Sean saw trees and a stone water fountain in the middle of a clearing in the night. From what he could tell, this was the nearby park that he would sometimes frequent. He also saw Issei standing next to the fountain, staring at the water._

_"I've been here before." Issei said to himself. He placed his hand on the fountain as he bent over to see distorted reflection in the running water._

_"This is the park where I took Yuuma out on our first date." Issei remembered. "It was real. It couldn't have been a dream. I remember everything about it."_

_Issei looked up from the fountain as he felt a disturbance in the air. The sky changed into a purplish color and it looked twisted and warped._

_"Well, this really is unfortunate." a male voice said menacingly. "Me running into you, that is. Out of all the people in this town." A man walked out of the trees toward Issei. He was a middle-aged man with short black hair, in a pale grey trench coat over a white dress shirt with an ascot that matched his coat, black pants and shoes, a pair of black gloves, and a black fedora. He glared at Issei with his dark blue eyes. "Not only did Kalawarner fail to kill that other human, but Raynare didn't even finish you off. Those stupid bitches can't do anything right." _

_Issei feared for his life as he jumped back, over the fountain and away from the malevolent man. Issei himself was shocked at his feat as he saw the distance he gave himself._

_"Trying to run away?" the man asked. Realizing the danger he was in, Issei turned tail and ran away._

_As he tried to get away from the hostile man, Issei soon saw black feathers raining down from the sky, similar to what Sean saw when he ran into Kalawarner._

_"Feathers? Yuuma?" Issei asked himself as he looked up and saw the man from before flying above him with pitch black feathered wings._

_"What a cowardly lower-class being you are." the winged man said as he landed in front of him, annoyed._

_Issei was shocked that not only the man caught up to him so fast but also that he had wings just like Yuuma when she killed him in his dream._

_"So let's see, your friends and master aren't here, you won't disappear and you're not using any magic circles. So that would mean that you're nothing but a Stray, right?" the man reasoned as he stuck out his arm and summoned a blue light spear. "So that means there's no problem with me killing you!"_

_Issei couldn't understand what he was talking about, but he didn't want to stick around and find out. He turned around and tried to run again. But he didn't get far as the man threw his light spear and pierced Issei in the back and through the stomach._

_The pain was intense as he fell to his arms and knees. "Ah, dammit! Why does it hurt so much?! When Yuuma did it, it wasn't nearly this painful!" Issei said agonizing over his freshly made wound. He tried to touch the spear, but as soon as he did, he screamed as the light from it burned him. Like touching red hot metal. As the spear stayed in his body, he felt himself getting weaker by the second._

_"Hurts, doesn't it?" the man said in a condescending tone. "Light is toxic to your kind. You're a tough one, I'll admit. But I'll put you out of your misery!" The man conjured another spear, about to strike down Issei._

_Issei couldn't move from the pain of the spear and from fear. He was going to die again! Sean didn't want to see more and was about to end it there. However, a surge of red and black energy blasted the man's light spear, destroying it._

_The man flinched at the feeling of his ruined weapon and looked at Issei. "What did you just do, you little bastard?! And what's that?" he asked as something glowed blood red a few feet from them._

_"Get away from him." a feminine voice ordered the winged man._

_"That red hair... Rias?" Issei tried to ask before passing out._

The vision ended at Issei's loss of consciousness. Sean was relieved at the end of it. It seemed like Rias Gremory actually saved him. With Morrigan's senses about the pervert, this confirms Rias' status of being a Devil. However, he still needed to be careful because the Fallen Angels know about his survival. But this time, he'll be ready for them.

**XXXXX**

School had ended as Sean got his things, took up his backpack, and left the room. As he was walking down the halls, the girls were staring at him in adoration and the guys did the same, only with contempt. Sean paid none of them any attention as he made his way out.

"KYAAA! IT'S THEM!"

Sean winced at the noise the girls made and he saw them looking down the hall. He turned to see what set them off and there she was. The redhead from the vision he had earlier. Rias Gremory walking side by side with Akeno Himejima. They walked with grace like a pair of princesses toward Sean.

"Oh my God! The Two Great Ladies of Kuoh AND the American Gentleman in the same place?!"

"That bastard better not ask them out and take them from us!"

_"Wait, what? Is that what the girls call me?"_ Sean thought in bewilderment.

The three people in question just kept walking towards each other as the other students watched in awe. Sean looked at Rias while she looked right at him, as if they were sizing each other up. Akeno just wore her graceful smile as she accompanied Rias.

The crowd of students waited with anticipation as the trio's distance from each other grew smaller. Then, they finally passed each other. The Great Ladies kept walking as the American went on his own way. The girls were gushing about the "wonderful" moment seeing some of the Academy's celebrities together just for a minute.

_"So, what do you guys think?"_ Sean thought to the gods.

_**"The Gremory girl is definitely a Devil, as we already know. But so was the girl next to her."**_ Morrigan told her host.

_"What was her name again? Right, Akeno Himejima."_ Sean remembered.

_**"But that's not the only thing I sensed from her."**_ Morrigan added.

_"What do you mean?"_ Sean asked.

_**"She had something else in her. She felt a little similar to Kalawarner. I think she might be a Fallen Angel hybrid."**_ Morrigan explained.

_"Should we be worried?"_

_**"I'm not sure. She looked like she takes cues from the Gremory girl. Keep your guard up just in case, though."**_ Thoth warned.

_"Got it."_ Sean acknowledged as he finished.

As Sean continued to leave the school, Rias took a second look at the American that passed her. When he passed her, Rias felt the power that came from him. And it was tremendous. After Kiba told her about what happened with Sean and the Fallen Angel, she decided to assess him for herself. And she wasn't disappointed. She recently just acquired another servant and began to think of ways to get this boy into her peerage.

**XXXXX**

Another day went by and not a single Fallen Angel feather in sight. That was a plus. After seeing into Issei's future of last night, Sean didn't want his own run-in with the Fallen Angels. He soon arrived at the gate and started walking towards the building.

"There's no way this is happening!"

"No way! Is he supposed to be cool now?!"

"Yes and I think it's working!"

Man, the gossip never really ends, does it? Sean turned around to see what set the other students off this time. Well, lo and behold, Issei Hyoudou walking with Rias Gremory. No wonder everyone's losing their shit. Sean felt a sudden déjà vu, reminding him of the time that Issei came here with Yuuma. Sean paid them no mind as he continued his walk into the building.

"What the fuck?!"

Sean groaned at the next nuisance that assaulted his eardrums. He looked to see the other two of the Perverted Trio and saw that Matsuda had punched Issei into a stone column and left him slipping into the ground with a glowing red fist imprint on his cheek and a bloody nose.

"How in God's name did you manage to get Rias Gremory of all the hot chicks in the school to walk with you here?!" Matsuda yelled at the top of his lungs.

Motohama placed his hand on Matsuda's shoulder in an effort to rein his jealous rage in.

"Matsuda, calm down. There's no need for violence." Motohama calmly dissuaded his outraged friend.

"How can I be calm about this?! You saw what happened!" Matsuda argued.

Motohama fixed his glasses as he kept his cool. "Issei's our friend. We should at least give him a chance to explain himself." He then pointed an accusing finger at his downed traitorous colleague.

"Where did you go and what happened to you yesterday?" he questioned.

Issei suddenly got smug and had a superior smile on his face. "Oh, I'll tell you what happened."

"Yeah, and?" Motohama urged him to follow up. Issei turned to look at his friends over his shoulder with that smug smile still plastered on his face.

"Last night, I got to roll around in some double D's." Issei confessed.

Both of his friends stood in shock and awe at this new information. They tried to visualize how it could've happened but failed due to their lack of experience. They soon fell into a roshambo battle in an effort to get Issei to give them more details. Sean couldn't help but laugh a little at the sight of this kind of camaraderie. They may be lechers, but they really were best friends.

**XXXXX**

Rias walked up the stairs to class after leaving Issei to his devices. She was amused at Issei's behavior and thought he would be a great asset to her.

"You sure are certain about him."

Rias looked ahead of her as she reached the top of the stairs and saw Souna Shitori leaning on a stone column as if waiting for her.

"Good to see you, Rias." Souna said.

"Good to see you too, Souna." Rias replied as she approached the Student Council President.

"It's not like you to gain anyone so rashly. What's special about him?" Souna asked as she and Rias looked down to the Perverted Trio's roshambo match.

"I'm not sure myself. But it does feel like I adopted a little brother." Rias answered with a smile on her face.

"I see." Souna replied.

"Although, I may have another one not far behind him." Rias added.

Souna looked at the redhead in surprise. "Really? That's quite a surprise. And who's this other one?"

Rias faced the President as she answered her. "I think you may already know him, considering how much you lecture him."

Souna had a closed-eyed smile as she knew exactly who Rias was talking about.

"Well, good luck with that one. He's not exactly fond of authority." Souna playfully warned. She walked away to continue her business as Rias kept watching Issei with a smile as he had his arms in the air in victory of his roshambo war.

**XXXXX**

Sean sat at his desk when class ended, reading his comic. He just couldn't stop reading it. Did that make him seem a bit vain, all things considered? Maybe, but if anyone had what he had, then they would probably end up like him too. Sean overheard Issei in his desk next to him, grumbling about fetching and someone taking their "sweet-ass time."

Girls started to get loud as someone came walking in the room. It was a handsome young man with short blond hair, bluish grey eyes with a small mole underneath his left one. He was wearing the standard boy's Kuoh Academy uniform. This was Kiba Yuuto. Sean didn't know how, but he seemed to sparkle as he entered the room.

_"Seriously? How does he sparkle like a Twilight vampire? Weird."_ Sean thought to himself.

_**"Sean."**_ Morrigan said.

_"Let me guess. Devil?"_ Sean replied.

_**"Yes."**_ Morrigan confirmed.

_"Is there anyone else that I should know is a Devil?" _Sean asked wanting to get all of the surpirses out of the way.

_**"Well, now that you ask, Souna Shitori is one too."**_

_"Seriously? And you didn't tell me this because..."_

_**"She never presented a problem before."**_

_**"If her name is anything to go by, I would say she's from the Sitri clan." **_Thoth surmised.

_"Sitri, Shitori. At least, she tried to hide her name from everyone else. Still, you told me about Rias being a Devil when I got that flyer."_ Sean thought annoyed at the gods omission of, what Sean considered, important information.

_**"It doesn't matter now. Now you know she's a Devil."**_ Chronos said.

Kiba walked past the fangirls and approached Issei and Sean.

"There you are." he said to the other two boys in question. "I'm here on an errand for Rias Gremory."

Issei perked up at the mentioning of Rias while Sean just looked at Kiba.

"Is this the fetching?" Issei asked Kiba.

"Would you both mind coming with me?" Kiba asked the two classmates.

_**"See, they're making their move. Just like I said."**_ Chronos spoke in Sean's thoughts.

_"Yeah, yeah Chronos. Stop rubbing it in."_ Sean waved the time god off.

"Hang on. I get why she would want to see Issei. What with her walking together with him here and all, but why does she want to see me?" Sean questioned out loud.

"She didn't say. She just told me to bring the two of you to the ORC." Kiba answered with a smile.

Sean sighed at that. He knew that Kiba was lying if Rias wanted to see him too. But he decided not to call him out on it, curious to what the redhead wanted from him. He and Issei got out of their desks as they got their stuff and went to follow him.

Murayama and Katase were among the crowd of fangirls as they saw the three guys start to leave together. They held hands and looked in disbelief with the others as they saw this.

"Oh my God! Don't tell me Kiba and Harris are about to leave out of here with that lecher!" Murayama cried out in horror.

"No! Don't do it, you guys! You'll both catch pervert!" Katase warned. "You'll lose all your friends and smell like moldy meat!"

Sean raised an eyebrow at that logic. How any of that would be possible just by spending a few mintues walking together was beyond him.

"Oh, just chill out. I promise I won't drain his pimp juice." Issei said in irritation.

Sean chuckled at what Issei just said and turned to Issei. "You should really be more careful in what you say to people. They'll get the wrong idea." he said with shit-eating grin.

Issei just got more pissed off at the American's antagonizing as the three guys left the room.

**XXXXX**

Sean, Kiba and Issei all walked outside with the sun setting in the distance. Sean started to get bored so he decided to listen to some music.

"Hey, you don't mind if I listen to some music while we walk, do you?" he asked not wanting to seem rude.

"No, not at all." Kiba answered.

"Whatever." Issei grunted. He must still be mad about the "pimp juice" thing.

Sean put his earbuds in and decided to listen to "Deal With The Devil" by Pop Evil. Sean started to bang his head slightly to the rhythm to the song. When the song ended, they arrived at the old schoolhouse. It was a little unkempt with vines growing along the walls, the bushes were untrimmed, and the clock on the roof was incorrect.

"Well, let's go in." Kiba said opening the door for us.

Sean and Issei went through while Kiba followed as he shut the door.

They soon arrived at a candlelit, wood-paneled room with Victorian-style couches and chairs along the walls. One of the couches sat Koneko Toujou, eating some chocolate on a stick.

"So, where are we?" Issei asked as he looked around the room he was in. He noticed the white-haired girl in the room. "Hey. I think I know her."

"Oh?" Kiba replied. "Koneko Toujou is a first-year and a valued member of the Occult Research Club."

The girl in question noticed the three boys in the room.

"My friend Issei here thinks he might know you." Kiba said to her.

"Uh, I could be wrong." Issei added as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.

Sean approached Koneko to formally introduce himself. "Hi, I'm Sean Harris. Nice to meet you."

Koneko looked to her senior. "I know who you are."

This surprised Sean as he never knew her. He never saw her among the fangirls that constantly tried asking him out.

"Really? How do you know me?" he asked.

"I've seen you get those perverts in trouble whenever they try to peek on the other girls." Koneko answered.

"Huh. Well, I mostly do it when they're nearby and wake me up from my naps. But I'm glad I can help in some way." Sean said. Koneko looked to her chocolate and presented it to the American.

"Oh really?" he asked. She nodded in response. Sean then took one for himself. "Thanks." Koneko nodded again.

"Well, that's a surprise! Koneko usually never shares her sweets with anyone!" Kiba said in surprise.

Sean then noticed the sound of running water coming from the other room.

_"What is that? A shower? In a schoolhouse? Wait, does someone live here or something?"_ he thought.

"Your clothes are ready for you, Miss President." a female voice said.

"Thank you, Akeno." another female voice replied.

"I JUST HEARD RIAS TAKE A SHOWER!" Issei shouted with a blush on his face. "OH MAN, I LOVE THIS CLUB!"

Sean winced at the volume of Issei's shocking discovery. "Damn man! Inside voice! Shit!" he scolded the perv.

"It's not polite to spy." Koneko simply added.

"Yeah, but I doubt that's going to matter to him." Sean stated.

"Who's that?" one of the female voices from earlier inquired.

Sean and Issei turned to see Akeno Himejima looking at them.

"I didn't see you two." she smiled as she walked towards them.

Issei flinched a little as she stopped in front of us. Sean just stood there with a faint blush at the beauty approached them.

"It's OK, I won't bite. You're the new guy? It's nice to meet you." Akeno bowed in greetings. "There's nothing to be nervous about. We're all really nice. I'm the Vice President, Akeno Himejima."

Issei calmed himself down as he introduced himself. "I'm Issei Hyoudou and I promise I'm not always this awkward."

Akeno giggled at Issei's fumbling as she turned to look at Sean. He cleared his throat and bowed in return.

"I'm Sean Harris. Pleased to meet you." he said.

Akeno kept her smile as she met the American. "So you're the American student? Well, it's a pleasure to meet you too. I hope you decide to join us here."

"THIS IS THE GREATEST CLUB EV- OW!" Issei cried out before receiving a slap to the back of the head, courtesy of Sean.

"I told you, dude. Inside voice." Sean chastised the gushing pervert.

"There's no need for that. He's just excited." Rias said as she came out of the shower, fully dressed as she finished drying her hair.

"Sorry to keep the both of you waiting, but I didn't have a chance to freshen up after this morning at Issei's place." Rias explained.

Sean raised an eyebrow at her. Not only she walked with Issei to school, but she was at his house this morning? Why would-? You know what? He didn't want to know.

"No, you're hot- uh, I mean fine- I mean uh, all good." Issei stumbled with his words as he tried to convey his understanding.

"Well, now that everyone, including Sean is here, we should get started." Rias said.

Everyone sat down, except Sean, who just stood as there were no other open seats available.

"First, I want to formally welcome Issei into the Occult Research Club." Rias addressed.

"Oh, uh, thanks." Issei replied.

"But before we get into the real details of the Club," Rias and the others looked at Sean, who started to get nervous as they stared at him. Normally, he wouldn't have felt like this. But right now, the anxiety built up because of him being the odd man out.

"Sean Harris, the reason I had Kiba invite you here is because that we know of your power." Rias informed.

**And that's the chapter! I hope you guys liked it! Alright, next chapter that I'm putting up is for Same Dream, New Life. NO EXCEPTIONS! Then I'll focus on this story, then SDNL, and so on and so forth. Let me know what you guys think of my writing the main characters.**

**Remember to Follow/Fav/Review**

**See you all next time!**


	3. Chapter 3: Exposed

**I know I said that said that Same Dream, New Life would the next one to be updated, but my beta reader for that story has been dark for weeks. So I decided to work on both of my stories at the same time. Given on how quickly this story's popularity is growing in just two chapters, I'm thinking of putting up a poll on which story should be my main focus. Anyway let's see the new reviews that are just waiting to be answered.**

**MrKristoffer1994: Don't worry, you got it!**

**ClearwingYuta: Well, I got a couple ideas for up to the Kokabiel arc. Just need to figure out what to do.**

**sonic: Thanks!**

**OnetimeMuffin: I got you a little action in here. More will come, I guarantee it!**

**itsamemario: Well, you're about to find out.**

**Lazymanjones96: You got more!**

**Dracus7: That is an interesting idea. If you want, PM me your idea for it and I'll see if I want to do it. **

**Now that that's over and done with, let's get back to the story!**

**Chapter 3: Exposed**

The Devils in the room kept looking at Sean for his reply to Rias' statement. He knew that the Devils would approach him about this eventually. Issei was confused at the mentioning of the American having power. He didn't know what to think, but he stayed quiet so he could find out what Rias was talking about.

_"Well, should we tell her?"_ Sean mentally asked the gods in his mind. as he adjusted his glasses.

_**"I think we might have to." **_Thoth said. _**"There's no point in trying to keep it secret. It would cause more problems if you refuse. They might even use force, if you don't."**_

_**"They wouldn't do much." **_Heimdall added. _**"If they do try to attack us, you could take them."**_

_**"No, that would be even worse than not saying anything."**_ Chronos argued.

_**"I agree with Chronos."**_ Morrigan pitched in. _**"They're probably just going to ask us to join them."**_

_**"I wouldn't mind joining if these hot young things are in it!" **_Izanagi declared in his usual perverted manner.

_**"You are saying that about children, you pig!"**_ Izanami yelled at her husband as she punched him in the back of the head.

_"Would you two stop for once?" _Sean tried to stop the squabbling of the divine Shinto couple. They just ignored him while Izanami lectured her husband about faithfulness and devotion. Sean just sighed at them. _"What about you, Yama? What do you think?"_ he asked the Hindi god.

Yama was silent as he thought about how his host should proceed. _**"Tell them and just get it over with."**_ he finally answered.

Sean mentally nodded and gave his attention to the other occupants in the room. "Exactly what power are you saying I have?"

Rias smiled at the response of the American. "Well, Koneko says that you were able to avoid the Kendo Club catching you along with Issei by switching places with a tree branch." Issei looked at Sean in shock and anger, remembering the beatings he received that day. "Then, Kiba saw your encounter with a Fallen Angel. He said that you just walked away from her and leaned on a building wall while the Fallen Angel just threw her light spear where you were previously standing as if you were still there." Rias explained.

"So, you not only have the ability to manipulate space, but also create illusions effortlessly." Rias summed up. Sean smiled at the somewhat accurate information that the redhead acquired.

"Well, that is true. So how about you tell me what you, a Devil, want from me, a human?" Sean cheekily asked. Rias and the others were surprised that the American was able to tell that they were Devils. Issei was perturbed at what Sean just said.

_"Devils? Every one in this room is a Devil?"_ he thought, starting to freak out.

"Yes, Issei. Everyone in here, even you, is a Devil." Sean informed him.

Issei looked at the American in surprise. "How did-"

"'How did I know what you were thinking?'" the American interrupted the resident pervert. "It's simple. I can read your mind."

Issei grabbed his head with both of his hands in an vain attempt to prevent Sean from reading any more of his thoughts. Sean ignored his actions.

"He's right, Issei." Rias told him. "We're Devils. And so are you." Everyone that was sitting stood up and opened a pair of bat-like Devil wings from their backs. Issei's surprise only grew seeing this. But what really stupefied him was that his own back grew the same kind of wings everyone else had. Everyone's wings folded back into themselves while Issei just kept staring at his own before doing the same.

"While seeing your dumbstruck face is funny to me, we should get back on track." Sean said. "I have a Sacred Gear and a rare one at that." Rias perked up at the mention of a rare Sacred Gear.

"Hang on. What's a Sacred Gear?" Issei asked.

"Sacred Gears are an intense power that's found in humans and are bestowed to them by God. The only people I know of who've possessed them are historical figures. So you and Sean are kind of big deals in the supernatural world." Akeno explained.

"And this is mine." Sean said.

He held his left arm in front of him and willed his Gear to appear. Suddenly, the golden glove from the comic he loved showed up on it again. It was shining, glorious golden glove that look metallic. The jewels that were on it were arranged on the first knuckles of his hand: yellow on the pinky, red on the ring finger, purple on the middle, blue on the index, green on the thumb. And on the center of the back of his hand, the final jewel was colored orange.

Everyone marveled at the Sacred Gear that the American summoned.

"This is called 'The Infinity Gauntlet'." Sean explained. "With this and the jewels on it, I am able to control six concepts: yellow for Mind, red for Reality, purple for Power, blue for Space, green for Time, and orange for Soul."

The Devils were impressed of the Gauntlet's capabilities. To be able to control just one aspect of the glove made its user extremely powerful.

"Can you give us a demonstration?" Rias asked.

Sean shrugged at her suggestion. "Fine." he said.

He started walking towards the door and everyone was perplexed at this. He said he was going to show them his power and he was just going to leave? Sean opened the door and walked right out of the room.

"Uh, what's going on? I thought he was gonna do something." Issei bewilderingly asked.

"I just did."

Everyone perked at Sean's voice as they turned to see that he came back into the room from Rias' shower room.

"I assume that you used the 'Space Stone' to get there?" Rias asked.

Sean nodded at her reasoning. "Yes, the Space Stone allows me to create portals for instantaneous travel from place to place. I can also use it to switch the spaces of any two objects like that tree branch and myself you mentioned." he explained.

"And when you read Issei's thoughts, you used the Mind Stone, right?" Kiba questioned.

"That's right. It's also how I tricked the Fallen Angel into thinking she killed me." Sean added. "I can make people see illusions by simply making eye contact. Just one look and I got you. When I used it on Kalawarner, the Fallen Angel that attacked me, I made her see what she wanted most. And at that time, she wanted to see me dead."

"So that's why she thought she killed you. Even after you moved." Kiba said.

"Yep." Sean replied, popping the "p" at the end of his response.

"So that's Space and Mind. Can you show us the others?" Rias requested.

"OK. How about the Reality Stone?" Sean assented. He took his backpack, zipped it open and pulled out the same air horn that he used on the Perverted Trio.

"An air horn?" Koneko asked.

"The very same air horn I used against this perv." Sean informed as he jabbed his thumb to point at Issei, said perv glared at the American for his use of the object. "But that's not all I got in here." He dug around in his bag and pulled out a skateboard. Everyone else was surprised that something as big as a skateboard could fit inside a backpack.

"How the hell did you fit that in there?" Issei queried in disbelief.

"It's the Reality Stone." Sean revealed. "Using it, I can transform any material into any nonliving object I want."

"So, what did you use to make that?"

Sean put his hand back inside the backpack and took out...

"Dirt?"

"Yep. I got two separate spaces in here. One holds my books and other school stuff and the other I just fill up with dirt for anything I don't have that I need." The American made clear. "So if I lose my keys, I can just make a new set from a small amount of dirt in my bag."

"Alright. I'll admit, that's cool." Issei said.

"Thanks." Sean responded with a smile. "Although, I'm not really limited to just dirt. I can use any nonliving material. Like I can make any amount of yen that I need from ordinary paper." He took out a sheet of paper from his bag and held it between his fingers. The red stone on his gauntlet glowed and the paper in his hand turned into ¥10,000 bills.

"But I can also destroy any nonliving object I want too." Sean mentioned. He took the air horn in his hand and held it over his backpack. The Reality Stone glowed again and the air horn began to disintegrate back into dirt and it fell into the satchel. He dusted his hands off over the bag to get all of the newly made dirt inside it. Sean then did the same with the skateboard, making it look like it could fit inside it with ease.

Rias saw this and her thoughts on the American were getting better and better. He only showed half of his Sacred Gear's powers and she was already sold on the idea of adding him to her peerage. Her curiosity ran wild as she wanted to know more about it.

"So, what about this Power Stone?" she urged him to continue his demonstration.

Sean zipped his bag up and walked over to the couch Kiba and Akeno were sitting on. He stood behind them as they looked on. Sean crouched down and lifted the entire couch with the two Devils still sitting in it.

"Ara ara, so strong!" Akeno said with a smile on her face and her hand on her cheek.

"I bet he's as strong as Koneko." Kiba added.

Issei was paying less attention to Sean's feat of strength and more on the angle of Akeno as he saw her thong between her legs. He grew a perverted expression on his face and started getting a nosebleed. Koneko saw this and got annoyed at her senior's lechering. She jabbed a quick elbow to Issei's side and he groaned in pain. He was surprised that a little girl like her could be so powerful.

"The Power Stone is pretty self-explanatory." Sean explained. "It enhances my physical attributes. Strength, endurance, etc."

"What about magic?" Rias asked.

Sean set the couch back down on the ground and raised an eyebrow at her question. "Magic?" he repeated. He placed his fingers on his chin in a thoughtful position. "I'm not actually sure. I've always tried to avoid the supernatural world, so I don't know if I could use magic."

Rias' expectations were diminished, but only slightly. In any case, she wanted to know everything there was to know about this "Infinity Gauntlet".

"Moving on, the Time Stone." Sean continued. "Again, this one is self-explanatory. I can use it to manipulate time."

Rias figured that it would. She then thought about her only bishop locked away in another room of the Club. But she shook her head and turned her notice to the American.

"So what are you going to do?" she asked.

Sean looked at her with a confused look on his face. "I think the better question is: 'Why are trying to talk to me right here, when I'm over there?'" He then pointed to the other side to the room.

Rias and the others looked to where Sean was pointing and saw that he was standing there with a smile on his face, amused at the startled expressions of the Devils in the room. They all looked in surprise as they turned back to where he was before and saw that he wasn't there anymore. It was as if he just popped from point A to point B. They faced the American only to see that he vanished again.

Rias kept looking around the room to find the disappearing boy when she felt a tapping on her shoulder. She whipped her head around to see Sean, standing right behind her. Her eyes went wide at the feat of speed he displayed. She didn't even feel his presence!

"You're all probably thinking, 'How did he do that? He's so fast!' Well, I'm not. I just froze time and walked around the room." Sean clarified as he walked back over to his original position, standing by the couches.

"OK, so that's Space, Mind, Reality, Power, and Time." Rias listed off. "Then that just leaves the Soul Stone."

Sean grew a worried expression. He wasn't too fond of the Soul Stone because of the warnings that Yama gave him about the repercussions on using it. When he first got the Gauntlet, he found secluded places to train himself with the Stones. But when he got curious about the Soul Stone, Yama told him that it should only be used in dire situations. After that, he didn't even think about using it.

"No, I'm not using the Soul Stone." Sean told her.

"Why not?" Rias asked. "You used the other Stones here." She tried to reason with him, but Sean didn't falter.

"I said 'no'." he repeated firmly. "The Soul Stone isn't something I can just use. And if I don't use it right..." Sean didn't say anything else, hoping that the redhead would take the hint.

While Rias did wonder about what the Soul Stone could do, she saw the look on the American's face. The Soul Stone seemed like a sensitive subject for him, so she decided to let it go for now. She then thought that if he joined her peerage, she would find out about it eventually.

"Very well, then." Rias conceded the argument. Sean sighed in relief, not having to use the Soul Stone.

"Now with that out of the way, it's time to explain your new position in the club, Issei." Rias told her new member.

She went on to explain the concept of the Three Faction to Issei. Sean just drowned it all out as he heard it all from the gods in his head.

_"So how do you guys think I did?"_ Sean asked them.

_**"As well as you could have, I'd say." **_Chronos said.

_**"Well, I think you were very informative."**_ Thoth added.

_**"I still think this was a bad idea." **_Heimdall retorted.

_**"You really were great! It seems you impressed them!"**_ Morrigan mentioned. _**"Especially that girl with the ponytail."**_ she included in a teasing manner.

Sean gained a blush on his face at the mention of Akeno. He did think she was beautiful, but he wouldn't be swayed by feminine charm so easily.

_"Stop it, Morrigan."_ he told the Celtic goddess.

_**"Ooh, our host has a crush!"**_ she teased her host again.

_**"Well, I don't blame him."**_ Izanagi spoke out. _**"She's a real Yamato Nadeshiko, if I ever saw one! You really know how to pick 'em, Sean!" **_Sean could just imagine the cheesy smile and even lamer thumbs up the Shinto god was giving him. Right before said thumb was soon grabbed and bent farther than it should be by his irate destruction goddess of a wife.

_**"Don't think I don't know what you're thinking, Izanagi!" **_Izanami said in a faux calm voice while she ground her teeth in irritation. Izanagi started to cry anime tears at the sound of his finger breaking under the abuse of his wife's temper.

_**"What's the big deal?"**_ the Shinto god said, in pain of his thumb being broken by his wife. _**" OW! I was just expressing how proud I am of him finding a girl he likes."**_

Izanami squinted her eyes accusingly at her husband, only to see that he was indeed telling the truth. While Izanagi was a pervert, like Issei, he was worried that his host would never find a girlfriend. Sean never really socialized with people after the constant bullying he received back in America. Izanami let go of her husband's thumb while Izanagi tried to make the pain stop.

Sean sighed at her behavior. While she was justified in her anger at times, Izanami can really act like a jealous girlfriend that would question her boyfriend's moves every time she found some kind of fault with them. Her host found her behavior rather immature of a goddess.

_**"I'm glad you didn't use the Soul Stone, Sean."**_ Yama cut in. Sean mentally nodded to him.

_"Yeah."_ he agreed. _"That Stone can be really dangerous if what you told me about it is true."_

_**"It is. Like time, souls are not to be trifled with."**_ Yama merely said before he excused himself from the conversation.

Sean ended his talk with the gods in his head and took notice of the conversation that was happening with the Devils. Issei was staring at a picture of himself and Yuuma, they looked like they were talking to each ohter and Yuuma had that same fake smile she had when Sean first met her.

"That's right. It wasn't a dream, Issei. She's real!" Rias said with a serious tone. Issei couldn't tear his eyes away from the picture. The weight of reality came crashing down on him as he realized that everything that he and Yuuma went through was real.

"It's a cute picture of you two." Rias said, bringing Issei out of dumbfounded stupor. "You remember it, don't you?"

"Of course I do." Issei answered, recovering from the shock but still feeling uncomfortable with the subject of his "ex-girlfriend". "But how is this possible?"

"She's also a Fallen Angel." Rias explained. "Just like the being who attacked you last night."

"That's just it." Issei replied. "Did I meet her? None of my friends remember her. Not even Sean and he actually talked to her."

"Oh, I remember her." the American said. Issei looked at him in surprise and irritation.

"Wait, you _do _remember her?!" Issei asked increduously. "But yesterday you said you didn't!"

"I lied." Sean said simply, crossing his arms. "Yuuma probably didn't even bother to erase my memories because she planned on killing me anyway." Issei could see that. It wouldn't make sense to just erase the memories of someone who was going to die.

"Although, even if she did, it wouldn't have worked anyway." Sean added.

"Huh? Why not?" Issei asked. Everyone else just paid attention to the American.

"Being able to control the concept of Mind not only allows me to manipulate the minds of others, but also safeguard my own from everyone else." Sean said. "Meaning that my mind is immune from memory alteration or mind control."

"In any case, erasing or mental suggestion is usually better for everyone, including your parents." Rias resumed her explanation. "When a Fallen Angel accomplishes their goal, they erase all traces of themselves from everyone around their target."

"What goal?" Issei asked.

"To kill you." Rias answered. "But only after she learned if you had this dangerous power she was so worried about. And when she did, she stabbed you with a spear of light." Issei winced at the phantom pain of the spear piercing through his gut.

"Actually..." Sean said as he brought his arms back to his sides. Issei turned to him to hear what he wanted to say.

"Now that you know about this Issei, I want to apologize to you. When I was "killed" by Kalawarner, she said something about another person killing a human. After I went home and thought about it, the only conclusion I came up with was Yuuma killing you." Sean somberly said, his head down in shame. "I wanted to tell you about what I thought about Yuuma when you brought her here, but you probably would've just thought that I was jealous of you and just rub it in my face more. You may be a straight up pervert, but that doesn't mean that you should die for it. So..." Sean gave Issei a small bow in apology. "I'm sorry."

Issei was stunned. Bowing to him was the guy that got him and his friends beaten up on multiple occasions for their depraved actions. Yet here he was, bowing in hopes of his forgiveness. Issei's image of him being a dick was shattered.

"It's OK." Issei told the American. Sean stood upright as he said this. "You're right. I would have just rubbed it in. I mean you did cause me and my friends some grief, but you seem like a cool guy. Plus, I'm still alive. So water under the bridge."

Smiling, Sean felt a weight lift off his chest. Issei wasn't as bad as he thought he was. "Don't think this means I'll stop getting you and your friends in trouble if I catch you peeping again. Especially if you wake me up from my naps."

_"And just like that, the American dick is back."_ Issei thought with a frown.

The Devils around the room were touched by the American's apology.

"Aww, what a heartfelt moment." Akeno said.

"You two looked like best friends for a moment." Kiba added.

"Just don't become a pervert." Koneko warned Sean with her monotonus voice.

"Now that that's out of the way, Issei, you should try and activate your Sacred Gear." Rias brought up. Issei was a little excited for this. After seeing Sean's Infinity Gauntlet, he was hoping that his own Sacred Gear was just as badass.

"Close your eyes and think of the part of you that you feel is the strongest." Rias told him. Issei did so as he raised his left hand in the air as closed his eyes and tried to focus.

"Focus, focus, focus, fo-" Issei chanted and stopped as his face suddenly had a big smile on his face. Sean rolled his eyes as he figured that Issei was having another perverted thought run through his mind.

"Very good. Concentrate. You can do this." Rias encouraged him in trying to summon his own Sacred Gear.

Issei tried to do as Rias said, but his struggling became more visible as he failed to do so. He eventually dropped his hand in defeat.

"I can't! I'm a weak soul!" Issei whined. Sean shook his head at Issei's pathetic self-pity.

"You're not weak at all. It's just a little hard right now." Rias tried comforting him.

Issei adopted a blush with a look of frustration, but it soon was wiped away. "Are you sure this isn't a mistake?" he questioned Rias.

"A Fallen Angel tried to kill you because she believed you were a threat. It's not a mistake." Rias told him.

"I can verify that too." Sean added. Issei looked at him in surprise. He didn't think that Sean would say anything positive about him.

"I forgot to mention that the Power Stone also allows me to sense other energies that are around me." Sean explained. "It's how I found out that you guys were Devils."

Akeno and Koneko were startled at this revelation, although they didn't show it. Did this mean that he could sense their _other_ energies, too?

"So what did you sense about Issei's?" Rias asked Sean.

"Well, I couldn't tell what it was exactly. Only that it was strong." Sean said.

"See Issei?" Rias told him. "You just need to keep trying to unlock it."

Issei wasn't too sure about himself having some kind of badass power that Sean said he had. But if Rias says that he could, then he could at least try.

"OK, I will!" Issei enthusiastically said.

Rias giggled at the newfound determination of her new servant.

"Now there's just one more piece of business we must address before moving on with the Club's activities." Rias looked at Sean.

"Sean Harris, I offer a place for you in my peerage. This means that you would not only be my Devil servant, but also a member of the Gremory household. You will be turned into a Devil. You would gain more power than you already have, extended life, and the opportunity to have servants of your own, once you prove yourself." Rias said. "Do you accept?"

As soon as Sean heard the word "servant", he already had his answer.

"No."

"Very well. Allow to get one of my- Wait. What do you say?" Rias figured that the offerings of being a Devil would entice anyone. She didn't expect such a swift denial.

"I said 'no'. I don't want to." Sean repeated.

"May I ask why?" Rias asked.

"I refuse to be anyone's servant. It's as simple as that." Sean told her.

"It's not like that. In the Gremory house, servants are treated as family." Rias tried to reason.

"I don't care! I'm not going to be anyone's servant!" Sean stood by his decision, in anger of the Devil's constant pushing of her offer.

Rias was taken back by his refusal. Sean didn't even hear her trying to stop him as he walked out of the room. Everyone just sat in silence after seeing the human leave.

**XXXXX**

Sean was angry at the thought of Rias' offer. Just the thought of it made his blood boil. He left the school and was walking back to his house to try and forget what had happened. The people that he passed looked afraid of him. Like he would snap if anyone said just one word to him. From children to full-grown adults, no one dared to do anything to upset him. Some even crossed the street, not wanting to cross his path. The look on his face made him seem like he was barely holding in all the anger he had in his body.

_"There was no way I would ever be someone's servant! Not after everything I did to get my freedom from that bastard!"_ Sean thought, his temper starting to get the better of him.

_**"I know you're upset, but you need to calm down."**_ Thoth said, trying to quell his host's anger.

_"I know! I know you told me about her going to ask me about being in her peerage thing, but it still pisses me off to hear it!"_Sean couldn't calm down after the thought of his freedom would be taken away.

_**"I told you this would be a bad idea." **_Heimdall sighed out.

_**"You're not helping, Heimdall! Can't you see he's angry enough as it is?" **_Morrigan chided the Norse god.

Sean just ignored the gods' arguing about him and tried to focus on getting home. He just wanted to go home, play on his PS4, maybe some Persona 5, take a shower and go to sleep. All he could do right now is hope that no one would talk to him or try and stop him.

"Well, look who I found!" a female voice said.

Sean stopped where he was and looked to see that the sky had turned purple like in his future vision of Issei. The one thing he didn't want to deal with and it just shows up right in front of him. He growled through his teeth as the annoyance he felt made his anger worse.

As he kept looking toward the sky, he saw another Fallen Angel. She was different from Kalawarner. She was a petite girl with blonde hair in twintails and a large black bow on top. Her blue eyes had a gleam of sadistic mischief in them. She wore a Gothic Lolita ensemble with a black Lolita dress with white frills, another black bow on the front, and a green jewel on the collar, white thigh-high socks, and black shoes. She held a glowing pink light spear as she kept floating in the air.

"Well, aren't you a lucky one?" she said in glee. "You get to be killed by me, Mittelt, the best Fallen Angel you'll ever see!"

She went on and on about herself, but Sean didn't care and he didn't want to deal with this now. He decided to ignore her and just kept on walking. Mittelt didn't even notice, too busy hyping herself to the human.

"That hag Kalawarner was really pissed when she found out you were alive. But our leader decided that I should kill you." Mittelt told him, her eyes closed with arrogance. "Normally, I would've been mad about cleaning up someone else's mess. But if it means showing her up, then I'll gladly-" She prepared to throw her spear, only to notice the human wasn't there anymore. She blinked owlishly as she realized her prey disappeared and looked around to find him walking away for her.

"Hey!" she yelled in ire. She flew down in front of him, her fists on her hips and her foot tapping on the ground. The human stopped as she did with his head down, shadows covering his eyes.

"It's incredibly rude to ignore someone, especially when giving you a grand entrance like I was!" she indignantly shouted in Sean's face. His eyes widened as he felt the last restraints on his self-control snap for a moment. "The least you could is-" she was interrupted by Sean's hand flying to her throat. He started applying great pressure and started choking her. He lifted her off the ground with ease, like she weighed nothing to him.

Mittelt couldn't breathe and she flew into a frenzy, trying to pry the hand off her to free her airways. She created a spear and tried to stab him in the shoulder connecting the arm that held her up. But the spear was destroyed as soon as it touched him, like he was indestructible. Her eyes widened at her failure and tried to rip his fingers off of her. She couldn't even make them budge. She kicked at his body to try and get him to back off, but it didn't seem to faze him. Her desperate gasps for air started to weaken as did her life.

"Listen to me very carefully, cuz I'm only going to say this once." Sean finally said in a deathly calm voice. Mittelt ceased her struggling as she gave the human her utmost attention at the sound of his voice. His hand's grip lessened enough to allow her to breathe. She took big inhales of life-giving air and started to cough from the asphyxiation. When she finally caught her breath, the human spoke again.

"I am in an extremely bad mood right now. I've had enough of dealing with the supernatural for one day. So I'm going to let you go, but if you try to kill me again..." Sean lifted his head to look at Mittelt in the eye. She was suddenly struck with fear as she saw eyes were colored completely black while his irises now glowed a sinister purple. Mittelt felt like she was about to be struck down by God.

"**I'll kill you."**

Those words were so full of malice that Mittelt felt like she was going to pass out from absolute fright. Looking into the human's eyes, she thought if she showed even an ounce of defiance, she would face certain death. She frantically nodded her head in hopes of him releasing her from his unbreakable grip.

"Good." He ended his threat. After making himself clear to the Fallen Angel, he threw her straight into a nearby tree. She flew through the air faster than she could on her own wings and broke the tree clean in half. She slid harshly on the ground, scarring it. The tree itself started to fall and struck the ground and onto the street.

_"Hmm. Can't leave that tree like that."_ Sean thought. People would see it and think something had happened. He knew that no one would pin it on him or the Fallen Angel, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

He stuck his left arm out and summoned the Infinity Gauntlet. The Time Stone on his thumb started to glow. He motioned his hand, rotating it to its left while closing his fist and the tree started to move. As if it was on a movie in rewind, the tree started moving in reverse, exactly how it played out but backwards and the damage it caused was fixed as if nothing ever happened.

When it was finished, Sean noticed that the Fallen Angel was gone and the sky returned to its normal color. Seeing the "threat" had been abated, Sean went back on his way home. Hoping that the Fallen Angels would take the warning seriously and that this would be the last he heard of them.

**OK! That is the end of this chapter! The Devils know about Sean and the Gauntlet now. And Sean gets his second run-in with the Fallen Angels. I hope you all enjoyed this one! Now, until my beta reader from Same Dream, New Life gets back to me, I'm afraid it will be put on hold. I'll still work on it, but it won't be updated until I get the green light from him. I appreciate your patience and hope to do it soon!**

**As always, Follow/Fav/Review. Please review. Because I need to know if my stories are worth writing for you guys. Both Infinity DxD and Same Dream, New Life. It would mean the world to me.**

**See you guys next time!**

**(EDIT: Sorry! I realized I forgot to put in my answers to the reviews in my excitement of updating this chapter. Don't worry, I fixed it!)**


	4. Chapter 4: The Dragon Awakens

**I can't believe this! Infinity DxD won by a landslide! Then again, I haven't seen any fics that puts the Infinity Gauntlet in High School DxD, so I don't think it was a total surprise. Anyway, thank you to all the people who voted on my poll. And to everyone that voted for SDNL, I will be writing the story. It just won't be as much as Infinity DxD.**

**Moving on, I'm happy to announce that this story has passed the milestones of 100 favorites and follows! Thank you so much for all of your support! And let's not forget the reviews!**

**Dontmsgmeambord: Thank you! I appreciate you telling me this! I'm not an expert on DxD, so I ask someone to review my work and give me their thoughts on if I'm portraying the characters right or if I'm deviating from the story. I understand that I don't have to follow canon, but I don't believe I'm creative enough to actually divert from the story and make it work.**

**ClearwingYuta: Thanks! I'm still thinking about their fates, so it's still up in the air.**

**BrxkenArrow: Thanks! I understand why you would think that. I figured that if Sean showed them what he was capable of, the Devils wouldn't see him as a threat. That and even if they did know what his powers were, they couldn't stop him anyway. Which would have made his life that much more annoying. I'm particularly proud of the encounter with Mittelt. I just thought what I would do if I was pushed to the brink like he was.**

**kynan99: OK, for what?**

**Loser Stuck In Memory Lane: I will with your support! Don't worry, you'll see where I'm going with him by the end of this arc. I will certainly try to do that.**

**Blackseal84: PM me to tell me what your talking about in detail. I have an idea of what you're saying, but I don't want to spoil the movie for anyone who hasn't seen it yet.**

**The Storm Master 567: See reply for BrxkenArrow. Thank you for your feedback!**

**Tanker 17: Hmm, I'm not sure about Tsubaki, but I'll look her over and figure it out. It's just that Akeno's my favorite girl on DxD.**

**Redblackmark, jesx0268: I only counted the votes on the poll, but thank you anyway.**

**Wow, the reviews just pouring in now! Remember, your reviews/favs/follows keep my stories alive! Don't let it turn to dust! And with that done, LET'S GET TO IT!**

**Chapter 4: The Dragon Awakens**

After the "fight" with Mittelt, if you could even call it that, Sean returned home and was just playing Persona 5 on his PS4. He always liked this game. About how the Phantom Thieves stood up against people lording themselves over others they thought was beneath them or using them for their own personal gain and making them pay for what they've done. He may have something that could gave him virtually limitless power, but that didn't mean he could just do whatever he wanted.

Sean watched the cutscene as he beat the final boss. A giant figure that looked like, what the voices in the game called, a demon lord descended down from the clouds and shot the arrogant god through the face. Sean felt a hint of satisfaction at the sight as wanted to do the exact same thing to anyone who tried to use him. People like Rias Gremory. At that, the anger started to well up inside him again.

_**"I wish I could just take away that anger you have, Sean."**_ Morrigan told her host, trying to soothe his rage.

_"I'm not trying to be angry, Morrigan."_ Sean assured the Celtic goddess. _"It's just... I don't want to end up being in the same situation I got out of back home."_

_**"Well, I'm glad that you have calmed down." **_Thoth said with a smile. _**"Stress can lead to health complications. You don't want to end up with an ulcer."**_

Sean smiled at the concern that the gods said to him. He felt like that they were more of a family than his dad ever was. He cared for his mom, but she was always hammered to do anything about and just ended up agreeing with her husband on anything he said. Sean felt more pity than anger when thought about her. The gods helped him with things, taught him how to defend himself, and they always listened to what he had to say.

All his dad did was pushed him aside because he didn't want to hear it. The only thing he really cared about was how clean the house was when he got home from work. And even if Sean did everything he was told to do, his father would get mad over something he said for Sean to do but never told him. He even made a list for him once and told him that he forgot to add something, but never called the house to tell him and still make it seem like it was Sean's fault.

Sean shook his head to forget about him and started to get ready for bed.

**XXXXX**

Sean woke up early the next morning and decided to go out for a jog. If these Fallen Angel attacks were going to keep recurring, then he had to keep his strength up. He was dressed in a plain white T-shirt and red shorts with a pair of black sneakers he used for exercising. Before he could go out, he had to start with some stretches. He sat down with his legs spread out and reached for his toes. He then stood up, brought his foot up behind him and grabbed it. He pulled it up to get the other muscles in his leg to limber up. He did the same with the other leg and started getting his gear.

Sean put on some ankle and wrist weights to help get more out of his workout. He held a bottle of water in his left hand and strapped his phone to his shoulder with his right. He placed his earbuds into his ears with his free hand and started playing Disturbed's "Ten Thousand Fists". He started his jog and went toward the park. Sean placed his fingers on his neck to check his heart rate.

_"A little high."_ Sean thought.

_**"I'm not surprised." **_Heimdall said. _**"You've been neglecting your training lately. If you keep this up, those Fallen Angels will tear you apart."**_

_"I know, Heimdall." _Sean replied.

_**"You shouldn't make any poor nutritional choices either."**_ Thoth mentioned. _**"Lately, you've been drinking too much soda. That's just as bad as skipping your exercises."**_

Sean sighed at the lectures he received. True, he did enjoy a bottle of soda every now and again, but it's not like it's the only thing he drinks. He still gets his daily dosage of water in 64 oz. He kept track of this by keeping an empty 2-liter bottle of soda, which was about the same amount, and filling it up with water. He didn't eat much junk food other than the occasional chocolate candy. He knew not to go nuts with the unhealthy stuff, but he did love his chocolate. But the best chocolate he loved was Reese's. There was just something about the mix of chocolate and peanut butter that seemed to make Sean's mouth water.

Sean stopped to catch his breath and took a big swig of water until he ended up drinking half the bottle. He arrived at the park and saw the monkey bars, deciding to get some pull-ups in. He grabbed the bar and started to pull. He got up to twenty and started to struggle as he pushed himself to go further. That's how you get stronger, after all. If you just stop when you start to feel the burn, you'll never improve.

He reached to the thirty-third rep when he tried to make it thirty-four. He tried and tried, but he suddenly let go and fell on his ass.

_**"That was pitiful."**_ Heimdall judged. _**"It's clear that I haven't been pushing you hard enough. You should've reached at least fifty by now."**_

_**"Oh, stop it Heimdall." **_Morrigan told him. _**"He's doing his best."**_

_**"Well, it's not good enough."**_ Heimdall retorted. _**"And don't think that what you're doing is helpful, Morrigan. You always spoil him!"**_

_**"What I do with our host is my business." **_Morrigan said simply.

_**"When it affects his conditioning, it's all of our business. If you spoil him too much, he'll never get stronger."**_

_**"He can protect himself with the power I give him. I can keep him safe!"**_ Morrigan's motherly personality always kicked in when she sensed that her host would be in danger. She would never let anyone harm him, not if she could do anything about it.

_"Heimdall, I get it." _Sean said, interrupting the argument before it got out of hand. _"I know this isn't good, but that just means that I have to do better."_ Sean looked to his left hand and thought about the Gauntlet.

_"After all, I don't want anything to happen to you guys either." _he told them with a caring smile.

The gods all had smiles of their own as they shared their host's sentiment. After seeing his life, they didn't want him to be miserable again. For better or worse, they were all that Sean had now.

_**"I'm glad to hear that, Sean."**_ Heimdall said with a hint of pride. _**"So let's get back to it!"**_

_"Right!" _Sean agreed with gusto. He saw a bench nearby, got on the ground, placed his feet on the end of the bench with a bar that was close to the ground and started with some sit-ups. He paused the music and set a timer for one minute. He kept pushing himself through the pain with Heimdall's encouragement and the music playing in his ears. Sean felt more determined to push past his limits as he kept his rep count going. He kept up his pace until he heard the timer go off. He made it up to thirty-five reps. So, about average for someone of Sean's age. But he could still do better. Sean then went on to do some push-ups. He monitored the grass to see any signs of dog shit. He didn't know why people don't pick up after their pets. Just pick up your dog's crap with a napkin or something and throw it in a garbage can. It's not like you have to take it home with you. After seeing the area was dog shit-free, he started his push-ups. He struggled to do it at first, because of the pull-ups, but he still kept pushing. Eventually, he reached about thirty-five.

_"Dammit! Why can't I go farther?!" _Sean yelled with frustration in his head, angrily scratching his scalp with both hands.

_**"Stop acting like that. If you really hate seeing yourself fail like this, then stay on your regimens."**_Heimdall reprimanded his host on his behavior. _**"I'll not have my host acting like a spoiled child."**_

Sean panted at the effort he put into his exercise and started to calm himself down. _"You're right. I'm sorry. I just can't stand being like this! I mean I have the Power Stone!"_

**_"Using the Stones will only get you so far. If you want to get better at them, your body must be able to handle the power that's required to do so._** The Norse God told Sean.

Sean finally felt the anger he had fade away. The process of exercising was tedious, but after Heimdall reminded him of the end results, his determination was renewed. If he was going to live his life the way he wanted to for as long as he could, he had to be strong enough to ensure that would happen.

He looked at the clock on his phone and saw that school was going to start soon. He didn't want to be late, so he got back up and jogged his way back home to get ready. Little did he notice that Koneko was watching him with a vanilla ice cream sandwich. After Sean's denial, Rias wanted to make sure that he was still alive if the Fallen Angels were going to keep attacking him. So she had some members keep an eye on him.

**XXXXX**

After washing away the filth from his workout, Sean soon arrived at the Academy. He didn't see head or toe of the ORC or Souna. Sean felt a bit of hope as none of the Devils seemed to make a move. Sean felt both relieved and on edge at this. Relieved that they weren't trying to ask him to join them right after his denial from yesterday and on edge at what they have planned for him in trying to do so. Souna didn't even try to find him if she knew Rias. She was a Devil, but Sean didn't know if her and Rias were friends or not.

_"Maybe they took the hint after yesterday."_ Sean thought unsure.

_**"Don't be ridiculous." **_Chronos told him. _**"Devils, when they find something that interests them, are very persistent. They're most likely trying to figure out how to change your mind about you decision."**_

Sean let out a mental groan. _"Man, I don't want to deal with them again! I just want to be left alone!"_ he whined out.

_**"I bet if that Akeno girl asked you, you'd accept in a heartbeat."**_ Morrigan teased. Sean's cheeks got a little pink at the mention of the Yamato Nadeshiko Devil.

_"No, I wouldn't. Don't mistake me for Issei. I'm not some hormonal pervert that thinks with the head between his legs after seeing a pair of tits." _Sean denied. But Morrigan wouldn't have it.

_**"You say that, but I can tell you're blushing."**_ Sean shook his head, trying to stop thinking about what Morrigan was trying to do.

_**"Hey! Don't get so defensive, Sean. Nothing's wrong with checking out hot women." **_Izanagi said. Izanami slapped him in the back of the head after saying that, her jealous rage surfacing back up.

_**"There is, if you're married. Especially when your wife is right next to you."**_ she scolded her husband, reminding him of matrimonial devotion.

_"I didn't say there was." _Sean replied. _"I'm just saying that it shouldn't influence your judgement."_ Sean may not be a pervert, but he was still a healthy teenage boy. He would admire the female form every now and then, but he wouldn't let it get in the way of his actions.

_**"That's smart."**_ Thoth said, proud of his host's rational behavior. _**"Your mind should be clear when making important decisions."**_

Sean ended the conversation as he made his way to class. He saw Issei sitting at his desk, just waiting for class to start. It was difficult for Sean to people. Even before all the bullying, he never was what you would call a "social butterfly". The Devil noticed Sean taking his own seat and decided to greet him.

"Hey, Harris." Issei said.

"Hyoudou." Sean greeted back.

After that, there was a bit of awkward silence. Sean couldn't really think of anything to say. He never enjoyed talking to people. More than that, he didn't want to talk to him after he became a part of Rias' peerage. Not that it was his fault, he just didn't want to the others to try and persuade him to join them. Issei seemed like an alright guy, despite his lechering. But that didn't make it any easier for the American to try and make small talk. Issei decided to take the initiative after a few moments of the silence passed.

"Hey, you OK?" Issei asked.

Sean looked back at him. He didn't think that Issei would even talk to him after everything that Sean did to him and his friends. He just figured that he would ignore him and think about the girls back at the ORC, undressing them in his mind.

"Yeah." Sean replied. "Why do you ask?"

Issei just shrugged as he thought about the American's question. "I don't know. You just seem a bit miserable."

Sean didn't answer. He did feel that way. He couldn't shake the feeling he had from Rias' offer yesterday. Even now, he felt like that one of the ORC members would enter the room at the instant the bell rang when class was over.

"Is it about Rias?" Issei guessed.

Sean let out a sigh as the perv hit the nail on the head. He only nodded in response.

"Well, I just don't get it." Issei said. "What was it that made you go off like that? I mean, I've only been a part of the club for one day and she seems very nice."

Sean frowned. "Maybe she is. But..."

"But what?"

"I just don't like the idea of being beneath someone." Sean explained. "Makes me feel like I don't matter to the person that thinks they're above me." As he told this to Issei, Sean remembered his father and how he ignored everything that he did. All the times he felt like his own son didn't matter to him. It made him very depressed. Families were supposed to support each other, but his dad didn't even show a hint of that.

Issei wanted to cheer the American up, but was stopped by the bell ringing as it told the students that class was about to begin.

**XXXXX**

It was the middle of the school day as Sean went outside to get some fresh air and try to clear his head from all this Devil business. Issei tried to get him to see that Rias wasn't like what he thought she was. Sean tried to see from his point of view, but then stopped when he thought that he was most likely too busy ogling her to notice some kind of character flaw. The American felt that the way Rias said that servants were like family just annoyed him. Even though she says that she treats her servants like family, she still referred to them as servants. Sean decided to put those thoughts away for another day as he sat against a tree with shade covering most of his body. Sean let out a huge sigh as he tried to relax.

_**"Still thinking about those Devils?"**_ Morrigan asked.

_"Yeah. I would ask if it was that obvious, but it doesn't get any more obvious when you're all in my head." _Sean replied.

_**"Maybe you should head straight home after school."**_ Thoth suggested.

_"Yeah, I was planning to, Thoth." _Sean said.

_**"Just be careful." **_Heimdall warned. _**"You never know where those Devils may be or when they'll approach you again. They might end up following you home. Not to mention the Fallen Angels might very well be doing the same."**_

Sean got a tick mark as the Norse God's warnings only added on the worries his host already had. _"Thank you very much, Heimdall. You really know how to calm a guy down." _he replied to the god sarcastically.

_**"He was just stating the risks."**_ Chronos defended. _**"Ignoring the situation around you will only make things worse."**_

_"I'm not ignoring anything, Chronos." _Sean told the Greek god. _"I'm just trying take at least a few minutes to not stress out over it. My nerves are frayed enough as they are."_

Sean cut off the link to the gods as he tried to calm down from his increased anxiety. This wasn't how he wanted the rest of his life to go on. He just wanted to graduate from school and try to live a normal life. Now, he had to watch his back every five seconds to make sure that no one was either following or ambushing him. The Devils with their plans of recruitment and the Fallen Angels with their murder plots.

_"How did my life get so fucked up?"_ Sean moaned to himself with unease.

At that, he even started to consider taking Rias up on her offer. But that thought was immediately shot down, as Sean remembered why he did so in the first place. His life was his own and no one else's. And no one was going to make him do otherwise. Sean's eyes felt heavier as he felt tired from his morning workout.

_"Maybe... just a... few... minutes."_ he thought as he soon fell asleep.

Some time later, Sean felt his body shaking as he slept. He stirred a little and the shaking stopped. After it did, Sean thought that whatever did the shaking was gone and went straight back to sleep. A few moments later, the shaking came back even harder than the first time. Sean slowly opened his eyes as he saw a blurry image of a person in his sight.

"Harris! Wake up!" a female voice called out to him in his sleep.

He rubbed out the sleepiness in his eyes and the image started to focus, until it eventually revealed itself to be Souna Shitori.

"What are you doing in my room, Souna?" Sean groggily asked, hoping it was just a dream and could go back to sleep.

"We're not in your room. We're outside of the Academy and you're sleeping underneath the trees again." Souna explained.

Sean started to finally wake up and took his surroundings into account. He didn't see the dim light shining through his bedroom window, but the sun in its shining glory above him. He also saw the trees Souna mentioned, providing him with some protection from its sunburn-inducing heat.

"Well, shit." Sean summed up his situation. He stretched out his arms and shook his legs awake. He then stood up, feeling somewhat refreshed from his nap.

"Language aside, I received a call from one of the teachers saying that you weren't in class again. So, I decided to take a look around outside to find you." Souna told Sean.

Sean wearily sighed as he shook his head. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you actually take time out of your day just to find me." he said. It seemed like no matter how hard he tried, the President always seemed to find him.

Souna was not amused at his statement as she fixed her glasses. "I just have a free period right now. More importantly, could you care to explain why you were napping outside this time?"

Sean yawned, trying to stay awake long enough to give his explanation. "I had an early morning workout and it finally caught up to me." he told the Student Council President as he checked his phone for the time. It was near the end of the school day.

"As you could tell, you missed the rest of your classes for the day." Souna said. She couldn't believe that someone like Sean Harris with his grades could be so nonchalant about his academics. Every time that they meet in this fashion, Souna would try to make him see that he was only hurting himself by missing his lessons, but he didn't seem to care.

"I'm sorry, alright?" Sean tried to apologize with sincerity. He really didn't want to miss his classes, not only to avoid another lecture on academic responsibility from the Devil President, but also not try to give the Devils any reason to try and turn the situation into their favor. Sean could erase the memories of his absences, but he couldn't just do whatever he wanted. He wouldn't end up like the bullies that would beat him up just because they wanted to. Granted, the circumstances aren't really proportional to each other, but that was beside the point. "I really didn't mean to skip. I was just going to take a few minutes to sleep and wake up for the next class."

"Regardless, that's not what happened." Souna scolded the American.

"I get that." he retorted.

Souna didn't say anything as she just stood there with her eyes closed in thought. She then sighed as she looked at Sean. "I don't usually do this, but I'll let it slide. Just this once. If you don't let it happen again, then I won't say anything,"

Sean blinked at what he just heard. Souna Shitori, the strict, by-the-book Student Council President, was just letting him go scot-free? Was this a trick?

"Really?" Sean questioned. "You're just gonna let me go? Just like that?"

Souna narrowed her eyes at him. "Do you want to be punished?"

Sean got a little irritated at the tone Souna used, but decided to take her up on her offer. He got his things and walked toward the exit. Souna herself stood where she was as she made her own evaluation of the power that Rias told her that the human had.

_"She was right. It _is _tremendous."_ Souna thought as she was impressed at the American and disappointed in herself for not noticing it before. She walked back toward the school building to continue her Council duties.

**XXXXX**

It was late at night as Sean was inside his apartment, playing the remastered Dead Rising 2. He enjoyed just chopping up all the zombies that stood in his way and killing the psychos that showed up. The combo weapons also gave him ideas on what to make if he ever got into a fight with the supernatural. A little Paddlesaw here, a little Spiked Bat there and no one would ever fuck with you. In fact, the whole world of games and TV gave him an assortment of ideas on how to hurt his enemies. He was currently fighting Seymour the Security Guard. This is why no one should mess with the security guards at the mall. They hold in that anger until... BAM! You have a bag over your head, just waiting to be hanged from a scaffold surrounding a stone statue.

"KA-ME-HA-ME-HAAAAA!"

Sean paused his game as he heard the yelling coming from somewhere. For a second, he thought he heard someone pretending to be Goku from Dragonball Z, doing the Kamehameha technique. He shrugged it off as he kept playing the game. He beat Seymour as the defeated guard struggled to climb up the scaffold, ranting about how he was a big shot and saying that he was twice the man Chuck Greene was. Right before he lost his grip and fell on an active tablesaw.

_"Now he's only half the man he is." _Sean snarked as Chuck turned off the tablesaw in the game. Speaking of, Sean then turned off his PS4 and started to get ready for tomorrow when...

"I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY, YOU PC-USING PANSY!"

Sean jumped up at the abrupt screaming he definitely heard. It sounded like it was coming from Morisawa's place. Although Sean never really talked to people, he had been around Morisawa enough to actually hang out with him. Usually around this time of the week, when Sean asked if Morisawa wanted to play some games with him, he said that he had some important business to attend to. It was weird, but what he did was his business, not Sean's. But this time, he was being louder than usual.

Sean got up from his couch as he went outside and toward his next door neighbor's front door. He pounded on the door, trying to get Morisawa's attention.

"Morisawa!" he called out. "I don't care what you do in your house, but you should at least be quiet about it! I got school in the morning!"

Sean heard footsteps approaching the door in front of him. The knob turned, opening the door to reveal...

"Hyoudou?!"

"Harris?!"

Issei Hyoudou, inside Morisawa's house at the dead of night.

"What are you doing here?" Issei asked the American.

"I live next door." Sean answered. "What are _you _doing here?"

"Oh... well, um..." Issei tried to explain himself as he looked around to see if anyone else was watching them. When he saw that there wasn't, he leaned in close to Sean.

"I'm actually here on Devil business." he told him. "One of the others was already booked, so I'm taking their place." Issei was kinda sure Rias wouldn't mind if Sean knew what he was doing, especially since he already knows what he is.

Sean peered inside to see Morisawa, sitting at his table with a stack of manga on it. He then realized something about Devils and their business.

"You're not here to take his soul, are you?" he questioned with a menacing tone. Issei vigorously shook his head in the negative.

"No, no, no!" Issei denied. "It's not like that! We don't take people's souls! We only ask for fair compensation, like money."

Sean kept looking into Issei's eyes and saw that he was telling the truth. He then had a look of understanding as he nodded his head and decided to go back to his apartment.

"Alright then. I'll get out of your way." Sean said, about to leave when he stopped himself. "Hey, Issei."

Issei looked back at the American as he was about to walk back inside Morisawa's apartment. "Yeah? What's up?"

"Could you not tell Rias about where I live?" Sean asked the Devil. "I just don't want to deal with her trying to get me to change my mind about the peerage thing."

Issei nodded at Sean as he agreed to his request. "Sure. No problem."

Sean smiled at Issei in gratitude. "Thanks, man. You're alright." He turned to head back into his apartment and went back inside to get ready for bed.

**XXXXX**

Back in his apartment, Sean was sleeping. Having a real good dream of chopping up zombies with his own Paddlesaw from Dead Rising 2. Any time that he felt like he needed to let off some steam, he would dream of all kinds of violent scenarios to act out. With every swing from the makeshift weapon, a lot of undead heads to roll and zombified blood spraying all around the place and all over Sean. When the weapon broke, he wore the Super Slicer, which was basically a large plastic mask with a lawnmower engine and blades attached on top, on his head and started charging straight through the horde, laughing like a madman as he reveled in the gory mayhem. He was a rampaging human blender!

"C'mon, you undead freaks! I got plenty enough for all of ya!" Sean shouted as he began his charge.

_**"This isn't very healthy, you know."**_ Thoth said. The Egyptian god and the others were sitting away from the carnage as their host tried to relieve his stress by killing the dream zombies. It was very unsettlling to see someone that was normally so quiet and well-mannered turn into someone who enjoyed massacring hundreds of what, in the zombie's basic context, used to be people.

"Hey! It's better than doing all this in real life!" Sean countered as he ended the charge and stopped in an open area, safe from the imaginary flesh-eaters. "I might be crazy, but I'm not a psycho!"

_**"From where we're sitting, I'm having a hard time telling the difference."**_ Izanami deadpanned.

"Being crazy means that you act outside the social norms, but that doesn't mean you're dangerous. Being psycho means that you are dangerous." Sean explained

_**"Again, hard time telling the difference."**_ the Shinto goddess repeated. With the way her host was laughing, she honestly was worried about his mental well-being.

_**"It kind of reminds me of the battles that I fought for Asgard."**_ Heimdall mentioned, reminiscing in his wartime memories and the warrior's pride he felt from victory. _**"Though, I didn't really laugh like that."**_

_**"Oh, let our host have his fun." **_Morrigan said with a smile on her face. She had a bit of a sadistic streak on her when it came to fighting and it amused her to see her host take down the imaginary undead with such enthusiasm.

_**"We should be going over some more training regimens."**_ Chronos brought up. Being a god of time, he didn't want his host wasting his over some visceral, bloody fantasy of violence.

_**"Come on, Chronos." **_Izanagi said. _**"You can't be so serious all the time. You have to know when to slow down, appreciate the little things in life."**_ He heard the squelching of a zombie's head being caved in by a Spiked Bat as Sean ripped it right out. _**"Even if that means taking your aggression out on some fake targets."**_ The Shinto God looked over to his wife and leaned in to whisper in the Greek god's ear. _**"Honestly, I'm hoping that Izanami would do the same- OWOWOWOWOW!"**_ The whispering turned into shouts of pain as his wife tugged his ear as hard as she could.

_**"Why would I do that when I could just take it out on the source?"**_ Izanami reasoned with a faux sweet smile as she showed no sign of releasing her husband's ear.

Sean made a Super B.F.G., a rifle that use soundwaves by combining a Blast Frequency Gun with an Amplifier, and blasted the zombies with its sonic bursts, causing them to explode like blood-filled water balloons. The zombies still kept coming as the American decided to change his weapon to something a bit more close-range. The weapon he held was his favorite in the game. A club-like weapon that had two axe heads taped side-by-side with a sledgehammer as its base: the Defiler. He was about to swing it at a zombie that was shuffling towards him, but he was interrupted.

_**"Sean, something's happening!" **_Morrigan shouted to her host as all the zombies disappeared as did the Defiler. Sean looked toward the Celtic goddess in confusion.

"What's happening, Morrigan?" he asked.

_**"The Fallen Angels are back!"**_

Sean's eyes widened as he awoke from his dream.

**XXXXX**

Sean shot out of bed and desperately put his clothes on. He honestly didn't think the Fallen Angels would be back so soon. Not only did his warning not work, but it only seemed to make their attacks worse. He put on his socks on and ran towards the front door to put on his boots.

_"Morrigan, where are they?"_ Sean mentally asked.

_**"The Fallen Angel is nearby." **_Morrigan told him.

_"So, where are they exactly?"_

**_"About half a mile and moving farther away." _**Sean stopped for a second as he heard what she said.

_"Wait. So they aren't attacking me?"_

_**"No. But it seems like that Hyoudou boy is their target! I can sense him and the Fallen Angel getting closer to each other!"**_

Just like that, Sean was back on high alert. While Issei did have a Sacred Gear, he never fully activated it. If they really were going to attack him, then he wouldn't stand a chance. Sean just crammed his laces into his boots, stuffed his feet inside them, and run straight toward Issei's location. He was a good ways away, but he had to book it. He couldn't use the Gauntlet in case anyone would see him and even if he did, he didn't have time to wipe their memories, so he had to run.

_"Time to put that training to the test!" _Sean thought as he ran toward Issei's position. He panted as his stamina started to give out. He thought about stopping to rest, but didn't after thinking what would happen if he wasted any time. He eventually stopped and had his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breathe.

_"Dammit! I'll never get to him at this rate!"_ Sean cursed in his head. He saw that an alleyway was right next to him and got an idea. He took a quick look around and didn't see anyone around. Running into the alleyway, the Space Stone started glowing. Sean squeezed his hand into a fist and punched the air, creating a man-sized portal that showed another location with a glowing blue border around it in the air in front of him. He ran right in and was now in a different alleyway. The portal disappeared behind him as he arrived at the new location.

He looked to the sky and saw that it was purple, just like in his encounter with Mittelt. He crouched and proceeded to the corner of the alleyway with his back to the wall. He peered around and saw that Issei was being approached by Kalawarner, the first Fallen Angel that Sean met.

"What a surprise." Kalawarner said as she slowly walked closer to Issei. "You're not much like that other one, but I'm sure you're the one I was sent to find."

Issei's eyes widened at what the Fallen Angel said. "So you're the one who attacked Sean?"

Kalawarner stopped a couple feet from Issei, perfect throwing distance with her light spears. "If you're talking about that kid that made me look like a fool, then yes." she sized Issei up like she did with Sean. "You're not as powerful as he was, so I don't think I'll have any trouble with you." She conjured a light spear and threw it at Issei.

The Devil dodged out of the way. Sean saw a small light coming from the perv's left palm, but he was too far away to make out what it was. Kalawarner noticed it as well and was surprised as she now learned how he survived Raynare and Dohnaseek.

"That's the Gremory family crest!" she said with wide eyes. Issei landed on the ground as the light spear that landed in front of him disappeared. He tried standing back up, only to land on his ass. He then started to crawl away from his attacker.

"Don't tell me I'm about to get killed again." Issei fearfully said.

"So, you're the one that bastard Dohnaseek mistook for a Stray. That fucker! Thinking he's hot shit, flaunting his authority all because of this job!" Kalawarner mentioned, the second part she said to herself. Sean heard it and could relate to that. He also remembered his vision of that incident as he now knew the name of the male Fallen Angel that tried to kill Issei. He looked toward the action and saw Kalawarner summon another light spear.

"But that doesn't matter right now. The fact that you're a member of the Gremory household makes it all the more important that you are destroyed!" Kalawarner yelled as she took to the sky and primed herself for another throw.

Issei just sat there in the street, frozen in fear of his life. Sean decided to put a stop to this. He stood up and was about to charge in to save his classmate.

_**"Wait Sean!"**_ Morrigan shouted at her host. Sean stopped in his tracks as he heard her.

_"How can you expect me to wait?!" _He yelled back at the goddess. _"She's gonna kill him if I don't do anything!"_

_**"Can't you feel that? Coming from the boy?"**_ Morrigan asked as her host used the Power Stone to sense Issei. She was right. The power that Sean felt from Issei's left hand was getting stronger. The Devil stood up with courage and thrusted his left arm in the air.

"FOCUUUS!" Issei shouted with all his might as a green light emanated from his hand and his Devil wings sprouted from his body. His hand soon had a green jewel on the back of his hand, like the Soul Stone on the Infinity Gauntlet. And around it was a red armored gauntlet with yellow spikes coming out from the sides. The power coming from it created shockwaves that blasted Kalawarner and shredded her clothes in the process.

_"I really hope that wasn't intentional." _Sean thought with a sweatdrop as he had a burning red blush on his cheeks and a nosebleed. He wiped the blood from his nose and tried to stay focused on the matter at hand.

_**"Who cares?! Those are some rocking tits!"**_ Izanagi shouted with perverted joy as he saw, through his host's eyes, the Fallen Angel's bare boobs. Izanami was enraged by his shameless admiration and punched him in the face, but Sean didn't hear her lecturing her husband as he saw the gauntlet on Issei's hand.

_"Well, look at that. So that's his Sacred Gear?"_ Sean asked, impressed at his classmate's acheivement.

_**"Yes. And it seems like it's as strong as I thought it was."**_ Morrigan said.

_"What is it?"_

_**"It's the Boosted Gear. One of the thirteen Longinus-class Sacred Gears, the most powerful class of them all. Besides the Infinity Gauntlet, of course."**_ Thoth explained.

_"Wow! Guess Issei's as lucky as I am."_

_**"Not only that, but that particular Gear also has a soul within it. A Heavenly Dragon. The Red Dragon Emperor, Ddraig." **_the Egyptian god added.

_"So, he has a dragon in there?!"_

_**"Yes, but it seems like he can't call out to his host. Just like you couldn't hear us for a while."**_ Morrigan told him.

Sean nodded at Morrigan's explanation. When he got the Infinity Gauntlet, he didn't hear the divine beings calling out to him at first. He first heard them in his dreams, telling him to get stronger if he wished to actually talk to him. Sean figured that the same must be true for Issei as well. Having a dragon reside in your Sacred Gear sounded cool, but to Sean, he wouldn't trade the gods and goddesses for anything.

"_That's _the Sacred Gear?" Kalawarner asked in shock as she was still floating in the air, naked. Not only did she fail to kill Sean by underestimating him, but she made the same mistake twice with Issei. If this one was anything like the first, then she was in big trouble.

"Forget this! I've got better things to do! Someone else can deal with you!" she said, deciding to cut her losses and retreat. She flew away from Issei, leaving black feathers floating down and was heading toward Sean.

_"Crap! Morrigan!"_

_**"I got it!"**_

The Power Stone started to glow as Kalawarner was about to be right on top of Sean. He pressed himself right into the wall as the Fallen Angel passed him by. He didn't want to be in a fight if he didn't have to. Sean kept himself hidden as the purple color in the sky dissipated. He let out a sigh of relief and stood up from the wall. He ran toward Issei to check up on him.

"Issei!" Sean called out to him.

Issei looked up from his hand and saw Sean running toward him. "Harris? How did you find me?" he asked in surprise.

"I sensed Kalawarner heading toward you and decided to come down here." Sean explained as he looked at Issei to see if he had any wounds. "You alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." he assured the American as he looked at his Sacred Gear again.

"Looks like you activated your Sacred Gear!" Sean said.

"I guess so. That Fallen Angel said that too."

"I wanted to help you out, but then I saw that light coming from your hand and there it was. Guess I was worried for nothing." Sean told Issei as he too looked at the red Sacred Gear.

"I'm just glad I'm not dead." Issei said as he went to get his bike off the street and got ready to ride back to the ORC.

"Wait, why are you using a bike? Don't you have a teleporting spell or something to help you out since you're a Devil now?" Sean asked, thinking it was odd that a Devil needed a bike to get around.

Issei had a look of disappointment as he explained the bike to his classmate. "Well, I was supposed to use a magic circle to go straight to Morisawa's, but it failed and I couldn't make the jump. So I have to use this."

Sean blinked at his explanation and struggled not to laugh.

"Don't laugh! It sucks enough as it is!" Issei yelled at his friend.

Sean calmed himself down and regained his composure. "Sorry. It's just- he he-. I mean, I'm a human and I can use portals to go place to place." he let a few chuckles escape as he said this.

Issei got irritated as he felt bad enough without his input. "Whatever. Look, I got to get going." He got on the seat of his bike as he got ready to leave.

"You gonna be OK?" Sean asked in worry.

Issei nodded with a reassuring smile. "Yeah, I'll be fine. I gotta get back to Rias and tell her the good and bad news."

Sean returned the nod and smile. "Alright. Just be careful on the way back. See ya." he finished with a small wave of his hand.

"Yeah man. See ya later." Issei replied as he started to pedal back to the ORC.

Sean kept watching Issei until he disappeared from his sight. He went back to the alleyway he was in and made another portal that led back inside his apartment.

**That's it! Another chapter done! I've been thinking that my chapters are too short and I want to know what you all think. I especially want to know what you all think about my writing. Am I being descriptive enough or am I writing all the characters right? I do have a beta reader, but having more opinions won't hurt. Constructive criticism is very appreciated and encouraged! Your critiques help me write better, any flames will be ignored.**

**As always, Follow/Fav/Review. All these things keep this story alive.**

**See you all next time!**

**(EDIT: Hey guys! I'm thinking about going back to my earlier chapters and put in some more stuff to make them longer, just like I did with this one! I take a look at them and see if there's anything I should do to improve them.)**


	5. Chapter 5: Opposites Attract

**It's me again! I hope you guys are loving this story! I'm trying to figure out how to make this story believable with the changes that I'm making. I hate diverging from canon, it's so confusing when making your own story! For me, anyway. I'm also going to try and take more time into making my chapters longer. I'm using WordPad, which doesn't have a word count, so I'm really spitballing when it comes to ending the chapters. But I'll try putting in more than just 5000-6000 words a chapter. My target is more along the lines of 7000-8000 words, as a start.**

**Let's get to those reviews, shall we?**

**duked: Thank you! When I was coming up with ideas for the Infinity Gauntlet, I did think of that, but I chose against it because of Cao Cao already stealing Ophis' power in the story and I didn't want to feel like I was rehashing it. I do have plans for Sona, but I'm still thinking about her being with Sean.**

**ClearwingYuta: Thanks! I have some ideas for who should be with Sean so nothing****'s concrete. The only reason I have written about him liking Akeno is that she's my favorite girl in DxD.**

**xhope14x: Thank you! I'm trying to get Sean to be more level-headed and rational than the typical perverted characters in DxD. I am trying to get my chapter to be longer. For my reasons, look at the explanation above the review replies.**

**VirusChris: Thanks! I'm sorry that Sean isn't the right protag for you, but I haven't thought that far ahead considering the finer details of the story. I tend to go with the flow, as it were. Kalawarner is my favorite, too. You'll have to keep reading the story to find out about their fates. Yes, I did see what you did there. I will try to be more descriptive when it comes to the gods in the Gauntlet. I'm not really planning on adding any more characters. It's just I figured that since Ddraig and Albion can talk to their hosts, I figured that I could do the same with the Gauntlet. About the pairings, this is what I'm most certain about. _Rias will be with Issei._ I hope to see your own stories be updated soon!**

**Cboylan: I'm a little unsure because I'm bad at writing romance. I did right a little bit in this chapter. Tell me what you think about it.**

**Dracus: I like it! Though if you have story ideas for me, please PM me. I just like to talk about these kinds of things in private so I don't spoil anything if I do decide to write it.**

**sonic, OechsnerC: Thank you! Hope you enjoy this one too!**

**With those done, it's time to start!**

**Chapter 5: Opposites Attract**

Issei arrived at the ORC with his Sacred Gear still active. He didn't know how to make it disappear like Sean did, so he decided to quickly get back to Rias and ask her how to do it. He was in such a rush to get back, he didn't think about how he could've asked Sean how to do it because of his own Sacred Gear. Not like it matters now. Issei went inside the room and saw everyone inside.

"Hey, I'm back!" Issei said to the others.

"Welcome back, Issei. And I see you've finally activated your Sacred Gear, well done." Rias told her servant with pride as she noticed the red Sacred Gear in question. She couldn't be more proud of him right now.

"Thanks! Although, I don't know how to make it go away, so I just hurried back after the summoning." Issei scratched the back of his head as he sheepishly admitted to the President.

"Oh, that's easy. All you have to do is just decide to turn it off in your mind." Rias explained simply. Issei thought about making the Sacred Gear go away and it disappeared in a small flash of green light. Issei closed his left eye to shield it from the flash and looked to see that his hand was back to normal.

"That's a relief! That would have slowed me down a bit in my private time." Issei mentioned with relief and no shame, referring to his habit of jacking off to his friends.

"Congratulations, Issei!" Akeno told him. She was like Rias, proud and thrilled that her Devil junior was able to summon his Sacred Gear.

"Thanks Akeno!" Issei replied, happy that he was doing his clubmates proud.

"Issei, I want you to tell me exactly what happened when you summoned your Sacred Gear." Rias told him. Issei nodded and began the events that led him to activating said Sacred Gear.

"Well, I finished my business with Mr. Morisawa and I was leaving to come back here. Though I didn't end up getting the pact from him." Issei started and ended the part with disappointment and little shame in his voice.

"It's alright, Issei. Just keep going." Rias assured him and tried to keep him on subject. Issei then nodded and continued his story.

"That's when I felt a chill, just like the time when that Fallen Angel guy ran into me at the park. I turned to see a Fallen Angel who called herself 'Kalawarner'."

"'Kalawarner'? That must be the Fallen Angel that attacked Harris." Rias said.

"Yeah. She also said that she was ordered to find me. Then she started throwing light spears at me and noticed the seal you put on my hand. When that happened, she then said that it was even more important that I was destroyed." Rias narrowed her eyes as her servant said this.

_"How dare this Fallen one threaten him!"_ she thought furiously. To Rias, anything that involved endangering her servants wasn't tolerated. Anyone that did so would face certain death at the business end of her Power of Destruction.

"Rias? You OK?" Issei asked as he saw Rias' angered expression. Rias snapped back out of her mental outrage and turned her focus back to Issei.

"Yes. I'm fine, Issei. Please continue." Rias assured him.

"Right. Well, after that, I remembered what you said when you tried to help me summon my Sacred Gear the first time. I focused on my left hand and called out to it. Then there was this birght green light and then it just appeared on my hand." Issei finished his story. Then he grew a dopey perverted smile on his face with a blush. "I even got the bonus of seeing her huge boobs after her clothes got ripped off when the Gear appeared." The last part got a few different reactions from the other Devils in the room.

Akeno giggled with her hand over her mouth.

Kiba sweatdropped and let out an awkward laugh.

Koneko glared at the lecher in contempt.

Rias didn't really react one way or the other. She was too concerned with the complications that would arise from the Fallen Angels learning about Issei's Devil alignment.

"Anyway, after the Sacred Gear appeared on my hand, she flew away. Then after that, Harris came by." Issei added.

Rias' eyes widened slightly at the mention of the human that denied her offer to be her Devil servant. "Harris? How was he there?"

"He said that he sensed the Fallen Angel coming after me and he was going to help, but didn't after Kalawarner left." Issei told Rias. Even though the American didn't accept her offer, Rias had a bit of gratitude for his concern over Issei. At first, Rias thought that he didn't want to join her peerage because of what they are. But even though Issei was a Devil, he still tried to help him.

_"So he's not concerned about our race. I guess that means there might be some hope of him joining us."_ Rias thought optimistically. She learned from Koneko that he was training himself at the park. _"He must be trying to become more powerful so he can use his own Sacred Gear better. Perhaps if I showed him how much stronger he can become if he accepts my offer, then he might change his mind."_ With this new information, she had higher hopes for success when it came to convincing Sean Harris.

"Issei." she called out. The perverted Devil gave his master his full attention.

"Yes?" he asked.

"You must be careful from now on. Now that the Fallen Angels know that you're alive and one of us, the situation has become much more difficult. I don't want you to get carried away and take them on alone. It's disrespectful to the rest of us." Rias warned. Issei slumped his shoulders, feeling dejected about the thought of letting Rias down.

"I understand." he acknowledged. "Thank you. I'm tired, so I'm going home." He turned toward the door and made his way out.

"Issei?" Rias called out once more. Issei turned to face Rias while he had his hand on the doorknob.

"Yes, Miss President?"

"You wouldn't happen to know anything else about Sean Harris, would you?" she asked. Issei felt complicated about how to answer her. He didn't like lying to Rias, but he made a promise to Sean to not say anything about him living next to one of his clients. He thought about what to say and he made his decision.

"No, I don't." he said. Rias nodded at her servant's answer.

"Very well then. Good night." she told him as he walked out the door.

"Why did you go and say that?" Akeno said to Rias. "You're going to end up scaring him."

"I'm not trying to scare him. I just don't want him to overestimate himself." Rias defended. She then bit her thumb at the thought of Issei being in danger. "Plus, I won't allow any of those Fallen rejects take my new favorite servant from me."

"Speaking of servants, you seem to have quite the fixation with Sean Harris." Akeno said in a teasing tone. After discovering the Sacred Gear that the American possessed, she delved into her books to find out more about it. But she didn't find anything. It was as if it never existed until now.

"It's not like that, Akeno." Rias told her. "Someone with that much power running freely will only end up being a big target in the supernatural world and getting himself killed. Besides..." Rias' expression turned sour at the thought of a bird of fire. "With him in my peerage, I might finally be free from him." Akeno's expression followed her master's as she knew who Rias was talking about.

**XXXXX**

It was the next morning as Sean left his apartment, backpack over his shoulder, and started going toward the Academy. He decided to not listen to music with everything that's been happening the past few days. He was a little uneasy about Issei finding out where he lived. He just hoped that he didn't tell Rias about it. The last thing he needed was any of the ORC stopping by his house and bugging him about joining Rias' peerage.

_"You guys think that he ratted us out?" _Sean asked the deities.

_**"It's hard to tell. I could read his mind if he was next to you."**_ Thoth offered.

"Hey Harris!" Sean turned around and saw Issei walking towards him.

_"Well, speak of the actual Devil!" _Sean couldn't believe his luck as the subject of his internal conversation was approaching him.

"Hey Issei. You doing OK?" The American asked the demonic pervert.

"Yeah. Rias was worried about what had happened. She was just relieved that I didn't get hurt." Issei told Sean. Sean himself was glad that Issei didn't get hurt either. He then noticed that Issei's Sacred Gear was gone.

"Looks like you managed to make your Sacred Gear go away." Sean mentioned.

Issei held his left hand up and looked at it, thinking about the Gear that was previously equipped on it. "Yeah, all I had to do was just think about making it disappear and it did."

Sean nodded as he thought about Issei's promise last night. "Hey, Issei. You didn't say anything about me to Rias, right?" he said, hinting at what he asked the Devil last night.

Issei shook his head. "No. Well, I did mention you trying to help me with Kalawarner, but I didn't say anything about your apartment."

_"Thoth?"_ Sean asked the Eygptian knowledge god.

_**"He's telling the truth. Surprising, given the boy's proclivity to females."**_ Thoth answered. Sean let out a small sigh of relief. It was a weight off his shoulders to know that his home would be safe from the pestering Devil princess.

"Thanks! I can't tell you how relieved I am to hear that!" Sean told Issei in gratitude.

"I'll be honest. I didn't like lying to Rias, but I did make a promise to you and I always try to keep my promises." Issei said.

Sean could understand a bit of what he was feeling. Rias did save his life, but if there was one thing that Thoth and Chronos said about Devils is that they are greedy by nature. They wouldn't do anything that didn't benefit them. It's why Sean decline Rias' offer. He refused to be used by someone who only looked out for themselves.

"Man, I still can't believe that I'm part of the club that has hot chicks like Rias and Akeno! Even Koneko is cute with her spinner bod!" Issei excitedly yelled.

_**"I hate that little perv! He's just like Izanagi!"**_ Izanami said with spite. Sean then raised his right hand and slapped him in the back of his head.

"OW! What was that for?!" Issei asked angrily at the American as he rubbed the back of his head to make the pain stop. Sean just stared at him with a glare as he didn't approve of the shameless exclamation the pervert was spouting.

"Can you even hear yourself? Do you have any idea of how disrespectful that is?" Sean said to him. Before his mother started drinking, she taught him to always respect women. So when he hears something like what Issei just said, he would get angry.

"There's nothing wrong with having those kinds of thoughts!" Issei argued. Sean just shook his head having had this same conversation with Izanagi.

"I didn't say there was. It's just that when you do what you do when it comes to girls, it makes it seem like that you only see them as objects. They're people too, you know. I'm sure you have some idea of that when Kiryuu looks at your junk." Sean countered. After meeting with the girl of topic, Sean was really put off on how she was the female version of the glasses-wearing member of the Perverted Trio. Only she measured dicks, instead of body measurements.

Sean sighed, calming himself down a little to keep the conversation civil. "All I'm saying is that you should at least learn some self-control. Who knows? You might even get a girlfriend, if you did." he reasoned.

Issei was surprised at the argument that the American provided. Him, get a girlfriend? He was a little worried about it because of Yuuma. "Really? You think so?"

Sean nodded. "Absolutely. Girls aren't going to like you if you don't respect them. I mean, you'd think you would learn that by now. What with the Kendo Club constantly beating your ass." Issei winced at the memories of the beatings he would receive from the wooden sword-wielding girls.

"AAHH!"

Sean and Issei stopped at the sound of someone yelling. They looked to see a figure on the ground wearing some kind of robe. But Issei was more concerned about what the robe revealed than the garment itself. Pure white panties. He soon had his trademark depraved smile with a blush on his face while Sean looked away from them. He also noticed Issei's face and jabbed him in his side, snapping out of his perverted daze.

"Oh no! I fell down again! Why am I such a klutz?" the person said in a soft feminine voice. The figure rolled over into a sitting position. It was a girl with big green eyes that showed an innocent expression. She was dressed in a dark teal nun outfit with light blue accents, a white veil that covered with blonde hair, save a pair of split bangs and some that flowed down past her shoulders, with the same colored accents with a cross on the front, and brown boots with black straps in an X-shaped pattern. Around her neck was a necklace with a silver cross. Next to her was an open briefcase that had clothes spilling out of it.

Issei just kept staring at the girl while Sean saw this as an opportunity for Issei to put his advice into action.

_"Not really the best kind of person try it on, but at least it would give Issei some training on showing restraint."_ Sean thought. He nudged Issei at his side, getting his attention.

"Here's your chance. Go and help her." Sean softly told the Devil. Issei nodded and went to the nun. He stopped in front of her and held out his hand.

"Hey, are you OK?" he asked. The nun took his hand and Issei helped her up.

"Oh, yeah. I'm OK, really." she said. The wind picked up and blew her veil off her head, revealing her golden blonde hair as it flowed in the direction of the wind. The moment stunned Issei for a second as he was captivated by the cuteness of the nun.

"Uh... thanks." the nun shyly expressed her gratitude, accompanied by a small bow. At the sound of her voice, Issei was brought back to reality.

"Sorry about that." Issei apologized for his lack of attentiveness as he took back his hand and scratched the back of his head. There was a bit of awkward silence, then the wind blew again and carried her veil away with it. Sean noticed and grabbed it before it got away. He joined her and Issei to return the garment.

"Here you go." Sean said holding out the veil to the sister. The nun took it and placed it back on top of her head.

"That was sweet of you!" she gratefully said to the American. Sean waved his hand in front of him.

"Oh, think nothing of it." he told her.

"Thank you both for helping me." she said to the two boys, still in her shy tone. Issei rubbed the back of his hand while Sean just had his hand in his pocket while the other still held his backpack over his shoulder.

"It was nothing." Issei replied for the both them. Sean shared his sentiment and started to think about the situation he was in. A perverted Devil talking to a girl of the Church. If there was a more ironic event that was happening right now, he couldn't think of one.

_**"Sean, I sense some power coming from her." **_Morrigan told her host.

_"Really? This sweet, innocent girl? She doesn't seem like she would harm a fly." _Sean said with mild disbelief. This girl seemed like that she would never harm anyone or anything, even if she was being harmed.

_**"Yes, but it isn't anything harmful. It feels more like a warm light**__. __**Gentle, just like her."**_

Sean acknowledged the Celtic goddess' input as Issei was having a conversation with the sister. But judging from the expression on his face, he was bombing pretty badly.

"Um...I'm sorry, but I was trying to find the church in this town and I got lost. Can you help me, please?" the nun sheepishly asked with a light blush of embarrassment as she poked her fingers together. Issei and Sean looked at each other, thinking about what to do. Issei was a bit unsure, considering the nun's affliation with the church. But he decided to go ahead and help her.

"Sure, I don't mind." Issei said.

_"She may be a part of the church, but she doesn't seem dangerous at all. What's the harm?"_ Issei reasonably thought.

"Well, we do have time before school starts... Eh, why not?" Sean agreed as well.

"Oh, thank you both so much!" the sister said with joy. She gathered her scattered clothes and packed them into her briefcase and the two boys started guiding the nun towards the church.

**XXXXX**

Sean, Issei, and the nun were walking towards the church on the far end of town. Issei showed some remarkable progress in self-control. Sean thought that most of the credit went to the girl being a nun. You'd have to be seriously fucked up to try and make a move on a girl who pledged her life to God.

"So are you a tourist?" Issei asked the sister. Sean just gave an "are you serious?" look.

"Come on, Issei. You think a nun is just going to come here for tourism?" Sean asked with a deadpan tone. Issei just got annoyed at his remark and wanted to tell him off, but refrained because of the aforementioned nun.

"No, I'm not here as a tourist. As a matter of fact, I was just assigned to the church in this town." she informed the two boys.

"Yeah, that makes more sense." Issei admitted. He felt kind of stupid for asking his previous question now.

"I'm so glad to run into such kind people here." the pious servant of God said. She then face Sean and Issei with a closed-eyed smile. "I guess someone is looking out for me!"

"Yeah!" Issei chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. Sean just smiled at the positivity of the sister as they kept walking to their destination. Issei then got nervous at the sight of the cross that dangled around the nun's neck.

_"I'm surprised that he's keeping it together like he is." _Sean thought.

The nun noticed his worried face as he turned his head away from her. "Is everything OK?" she asked with concern.

Issei forced a smile on his face to reassure her. "Yeah, I'm fine." He then thought about the feeling he got just now.

"WHHHAAAA-HA-HA!" The trio heard the sound of a child crying close by. The nun put down her briefcase and went to the source of the wailing, which was a small boy that was on the ground with a scrape on his knee. She knelt down to the child's level as she patted his head.

"A big boy like you shouldn't cry over a scrape. Don't worry, you're going to be fine." she soothed the child. She held her hands over the boy's knee and a faint green glow started to emanate from them. Sean and Issei went for a closer look and saw a pair of rings appear on the sister's hand, one on each of them. The rings were colored blue and silver with a blue-green gem on each of them. As the glow encompassed the child's wound, it soon began to vanish, as if it was never there.

_**"It's Twilight Healing." **_Thoth suddenly said in Sean's head.

_"Twilight Healing?"_ Sean repeated.

_**"Yes. It's also known as the Smile of the Holy Mother. It's a Sacred Gear that takes the form of the pair of rings on her hands and allow the user to heal any injury. Though it doesn't regenerate lost limbs, reduce exhaustion, or cure sickness; just physical wounds. And it doesn't just heal humans. It can heal Angels, Fallen Angels, and Devils as well."**_ the knowledge god explained. Having an all-knowing god in your head sure does its perks. Sean marveled at the Gear the sister possessed.

_"That's pretty impressive! And it seems to fit her perfectly."_ Sean commented.

"Wow! She healed him!" Issei said. He then had a grimace on his face as he felt a surge of pain coming from his left hand. Sean noticed this.

"Hey, you OK?" he asked in worry. Issei felt the pain was gone and looked at Sean.

"Yeah, but it was weird. My hand just started hurting all of a sudden. It's gone now." Issei told Sean. Issei didn't know what to make of it. His hand never did anything like that before.

The glow coming from the nun's hands dissipated and the Sacred Gear was gone too. She put on a kind smile for the small boy. "See? You're all better now. No need to cry." she said to the child as he got off the ground went back to his parents.

The sister looked at the two teenage boys. "All done now. Sorry for making you wait on me." she said as she playfully stuck her tongue out to them. She got off the ground, grabbed her briefcase again and the nun, the Devil, and the human went back on their way to the church.

**XXXXX**

The three teenagers were approaching the church as Sean saw it in the distance. Issei kept thinking about his hand when the sister healed the child's wound earlier. This caused a bit of silence to go on for a few minutes, so Sean decided to break it.

"That's got quite the power you've got!" he said. The nun looked at the American as she heard his voice.

"Thank you! I consider it to be a gift and a blessing!" she thanked with, what Sean could tell, was a forced smile. She then face forward again with her smile turning somber. "Really, it's wonderful." she softly added. Sean wondered how someone like her would be sad about a gift that could help heal people.

"You don't seem that happy about it. It's not that you're ungrateful, more like sad that you have it. Like it's more of a burden than a gift." Sean hypothesized on the sister's sudden change of expression.

"Well... that's..." the nun tried to explain. But Sean just shook his head.

"It's OK. I didn't mean to dredge up anything you'd rather not talk about." he dismissed. "I'm not really used to talking to people, so I end up saying things that might unintentionally offend them. I'm sorry." the American apologized. The sister got nervous, thinking that Sean was disheartened at his attempt to conversate.

"It's fine! Really, I forgive you!" she quickly tried to amend the supposed offence that Sean thought he commited. Sean let out a small sigh of relief, glad that he didn't upset the gentle sister.

"Thanks!" he said with a small smile.

_"This girl really is innocent."_ Sean thought.

_**"Yes. She has such a pure soul. It's like being in the presence of an Angel."**_ Yama said.

"There it is!" the nun said happily. We all stopped to see the large church among the trees in the distance. Sean would see the building when he went on his early morning jogs, but he never really gave it much thought. He was never really much of a religious person. Not that he didn't believe in God, he just thought religion made some things more complicated than they should be. Plus, sometimes there are people who are religious and judge others on their own life choices. He didn't want to be around people like that.

Issei, who had been quiet since the sister's healing, just got a chill up his spine as he saw the religious establishment. Every fiber of his being went nuts as he kept looking toward the church. He felt that he should leave as quick as he could.

"It's weird. I've never seen a single person up there. I didn't think anyone would be called to there." Issei said. The sister walked a little bit ahead of the two boys and turned to faced them.

"Allow me to thank you both for your kindness. Won't you please come inside with me for some tea?" the nun offered. Issei started to sweat a little as his left hand started to shake. Sean decided to save the situation.

"Actually, we have to get to school. Don't want to be late and get in trouble." he said. Issei relaxed a little at the American's quick thinking. The nun looked a little dejected about her new friends having to leave.

"I see. That's alright. Thank you both again for your help!" she sadly then gratefully said. The sister realized that she never introduced herself to the kind souls that took time out of the day to assist her. "My name is Asia Argento."

"My name is Issei Hyoudou and you're very welcome." the pervert mentioned.

"And I'm Sean Harris, nice to meet you." the American returned the introduction.

"Issei and Sean? Well, it was a blessing meeting you both and I'm sure I won't forget this. I hope that we see each other again." Asia told the boys with a sincere smile. Issei got sheepish at her honest opinion of her meeting with the two boys.

"Yeah, me too." Issei shared her thoughts as he rubbed the back of his head. Sean figured that he was trying to get as far away from the church as he could.

"Same here." Sean said, also sharing the same sentiment that Asia conveyed.

"If either of you are bored or in the neighborhood, come by the church. That's where I'll be." she offered to the two boys. Issei wanted to take her up on her offer, but didn't feel safe around the church. Sean would've taken her up on her offer, but didn't want to endanger her on the off chance that the Fallen Angels would attack him again.

"Sounds great! We'll see you soon!" Issei said for both him and Sean. The American just waved to her as the two boys turned and started walking toward the Academy again.

"Thanks! Bye!" Asia waved at us as she turned in the opposite direction and went toward the church. Sean looked over his shoulder to see Asia shrinking in the distance. He then had a smile on his face as he looked at Issei.

"Dude! That was impressive! I honestly didn't think you could pull that off!" Sean congratulated Issei on his show of self-restraint. Issei was still a bit nervous about being near the church.

"Yeah, thanks." he said to Sean, trying to calm himself down from the fear he felt earlier.

"You OK?" Sean asked, concerned about Issei's demeanor. Issei nodded as he tried to forget about the feeling he got from his close proximity of the church.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just when I saw the church, I felt like I was going to be killed if I got any closer to it." Issei explained. Sean nodded as he could understand why Issei would feel like that.

"I think I get it. I mean, you're a Devil walking towards a holy place. That has to be considered enemy territory to Devils, right?" Sean theorized. Issei had a look of comprehension after he thought about it more.

"Yeah, that makes sense. It's a shame, she seemed really nice." Issei said, saddened at not being able to see Asia again.

"Don't be like that. Maybe you'll see her outside the church again." Sean told him, trying to cheer him up. Issei soon grew a smile on his face as he got a bit of hope of seeing the sister again. They both made their way to the school as they took solace in the fact that they helped a kind person today.

**XXXXX**

The school day went by in a flash as Sean thought about what to do with his free time. He thought about just walking around town, but that's what he usually does and decided to do something new. Maybe he would just head home, but no. He already did that yesterday and he chose to do something outside of video games or comics for a change.

_**"I say that you should do some training."**_ Chronos suggested.

_"Well, like Heimdall said, I have been procrastinating from it lately. But what should I work on today?" _Sean asked.

_**"You should work on weapons training. Exercising your body is good, but you should also improve on your technique."**_ Heimdall reasoned. Sean nodded at the Norse god's thoughts.

_"Yeah, that sound good. But how should I do that?"_

_**"Well, I think you should work on your swordsmanship. I think I know just the people to help you."**_ Izanagi said. Izanami thought that her husband had ulterior motives given his track record.

_**"What are you planning now, Izanagi?"**_ she asked her husband in a distrusting tone.

_**"Nothing. I'm merely suggesting that Sean should go to the Kendo Club to help with his training."**_ Izanagi defended himself. Izanami glared at her husband with her sharp red eyes in Sean's mind. She was skeptical of Izanagi to suddenly be serious about things, training especially. She decided to hold her judgement and wait for her husband to slip up in his reasoning.

_**"That's actually not a bad idea, Izanagi. And you didn't even make a single perverted comment."**_ Thoth said, impressed at the Shinto god's rational thinking.

_"Yeah, let's just hope that they'll actually accept my asking."_

Sean went toward the gym. The Kendo Club usually stayed after school to practice for their meets, so they're probably over there right now. Sean arrived at the gym doors and went inside. He saw the Kendo Club already in their uniforms, preparing for their daily practice session. The girls were doing some pre-practice stretching with Murayama and Katase overseeing them. Sean walked over to the captains and made himself known.

"Excuse me?" he called out to them. The two girls turned to see him and immediately had smiles on their faces. The other girls also noticed his presense and soon became giddy.

"Oh my God! It's him!"

"Did he come to see us practice?!"

"Please go out with me, Harris!"

Sean internally groaned at the last part, realizing why he didn't stick around after school. He remembered why he was here and toughed it out. He walked up to Murayama and Katase.

"Hi, I know this is a little sudden but I was wondering if you would teach me a bit of Kendo?" he asked with a bit of shyness. Murayama and Katase were surprised at the American's request. He never usually did any extracurricular activities. They said nothing as they turned to each other and whipsered in each other's ear, contemplating. They soon turned to Sean as they made their decision.

"Alright. How much do you know about Kendo?" Murayama asked him. Sean rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Nothing at all." he replied. The two girls figured that would be the case as Katase spoke next.

"Then you'll have to watch for the first day, after that if you're still interested, we'll see about getting you a uniform." she explained to Sean. He nodded and went to the side of the ring and sat down to watch the different matches.

_**"Alright, Sean. Remember to not only focus on their swords, but also on their bodies." **_Izanagi spoke seriously.

_**"I KNEW IT, YOU PERV!"**_ Izanami shouted as she started to wring his neck. Morrigan tried to pull the Shinto goddess off her husband as Heimdall got between them and Izanagi.

_**"Izanami, I know Izanagi is known to be a bit perverted, but you should really have more trust in your husband."**_ Morrigan calmly told her as Izanami tried to wrestle out of the Celtic goddess' grip.

_**"I was just trying to tell him to focus on all of his opponent's movements to tell when and how they'll try to strike."**_ Izanagi explained from behind Heimdall, his voice hoarse as he tried rubbing it to make his throat feel better.

Izanami's resistance against Morrigan's restraining hug lessened as she finally calmed down. Seeing this, Morrigan let her go and the Shinto goddess started to approach the pair of gods. Heimdall stood ready in case it was a trick, but Izanami stopped in front of the Norse god.

_**"Please, Heimdall. I wish to apologize to my husband." **_Izanami spoke softly with regret. Heimdall relaxed his stance and stood aside to allow Izanami to go to Izanagi. Izanagi was a little scared at first. But after hearing his wife speak to Heimdall, he started to calm down.

Izanami walked right up to her husband. The Shinto couple stood in front of each other. The other gods watched with tension as they waited for one of them to make a move. Unsurprisingly, Izanami made the first move. But what did surprise them, even Izanagi, was that instead of a hard slap, Izanami gave her husband a soft hug. Izanagi stood slightly shocked at his usually aggressive wife giving such a warm embrace. Izanagi returned the hug as the Shinto couple spent the next few moments basking in their love.

_**"I'm sorry, Izanagi. I shouldn't have done that to you."**_ Izanami apologized for her attempt of choking out her husband. Izanagi backed away a little while still having his wife in his arms.

_**"No, Izanami. I'm sorry. It's because of me checking out other women that caused you to do it. I don't blame you. But always remember, even though my eyes may wander, my heart will always belong to you."**_ Izanagi said to his wife with all the sentimental honesty he could muster. His passionate words moved Izanami to tears and gave her husband a soft but loving kiss.

The other gods smiled at the romance the Shinto couple displayed and Sean couldn't help but feel happy for the both of them. However, he chose to remain focused on the Kendo practice matches as Izanagi and Izanami had a momentary reconciliation.

As Sean was watching the matches and practice techniques of the Kendo Club, Kiba was peering through the door leading to inside the gym. He received orders from Rias to observe the American, just like Koneko. She wanted to ensure that Sean wouldn't be swayed to any other side other than her own. Kiba then left to report his findings to his master.

**XXXXX**

The sun had set and night was closing in as Sean left the Kendo Club's meeting at the Academy. He didn't think that it would last well into the night. He wanted his full attention on his surroundings, so he once again refused to listen to his music. It was more dangerous to walk through anywhere at night. Especially with what's been happening to Sean lately. He was currently walking back home, hoping to get some sleep.

_**"Sean, I'm sensing something again."**_ Morrigan told her host. Sean immediately got his guard up, expecting someone to attack him at any moment.

_"Is it the Fallen Angels?"_ he asked.

_**"No. It feels more like a Devil."**_

_"So Rias finally decided to take me by force, huh?"_ Sean had that thought in the back of his mind that the Devil would pull something like this.

_**"No, it's not her or her servants. This Devil signature is more wild than theirs. I believe it's a Stray Devil."**_ Sean quirked an eyebrow and scratched his head, feeling like he heard that term some time ago.

_"Man, I feel like I heard of that. What was it again?"_ he inquired.

_**"Stray Devils are former Devil servants that rebel against their masters and kill them. When this happens, the power they have corrupts them and turns them into grotesque shells of their former selves."**_ Thoth answered.

_"Right! Thanks, Thoth!" _Sean said in gratitude. The Egyptian nodded in reply and fixed his glasses when they drooped as a result.

_**"In any case, this is the perfect opportunity to test your skills against a live opponent." **_Chronos mentioned.

_**"Yes! It's time for a glorious battle! Hahaha!"**_ Heimdall cheered at the prospect of a fight. Sean figured that it would be great to finally go up against something that could give him a challenge for a change, instead of his undead dream fights.

_"You got a lock on its location, Morrigan?"_ he asked the Celtic goddess. She nodded as his question.

_**"Yes, it's not far. Please Sean, be careful."**_ she told him in worry.

_"Don't worry. That's why you're all here with me!"_ Sean told them with pride. He summoned the Infinity Gauntlet and activated the Space Stone. Just like before, he punched the air in front of him and created a portal to the Stray Devil's location.

Sean walked through the portal and it disappeared. He looked to see that he stood in front of the entrance to an abandoned house. He kept the Gauntlet active in case of an ambush.

"Harris?" Sean looked over his shoulder to see Issei with Rias and the rest of her peerage at her side.

"Hyoudou? And I see you're not alone this time." Sean narrowed his eyes at Rias as he remembered her offer a few days ago.

"Hello, Sean Harris. It seems that we meet again." Rias said to the American. She didn't expect that he would be here. How fortune smiled upon her this night.

"Hey Akeno. Kiba. Koneko." Sean greeted the other Devils. Akeno gave him a small wave, Kiba just raised his hand to him, and Koneko gave a simple nod of acknowledgement.

"I assume you're all here for the Stray inside." The American surmised. Rias nodded at his reasoning.

"Yes, as the Devil that governs Kuoh Academy, I hold the responsibility of maintaining the peace between the supernatural and the human world." Rias explained. "But why are you here? Perhaps you plan on doing the same as we are?" she questioned. Sean nodded at her own reasoning.

"Yep. I sensed the Stray Devil here and figured that I would do something about it before it caused some some damage." he replied. Rias grew a small smile on her face as she was hoping for a chance to convince the human to change his mind about her offer of joining her peerage. She figured instead of teling him what he would gain, she would just show him.

"Well, how about you just watch us deal with the Stray? It seems only fair that you should learn of our skills, since we know yours." Rias proposed. Sean thought about this for a minute with the gods in his mind.

_"What do you guys think?"_ Sean asked.

_**"I think she just wants to show off her servants and showcase their powers to persuade you into accepting her peerage offer."**_ Chronos assumed.

_**"Yes, she does. She certainly thinks that she can do this."**_ Thoth agreed with the time god after reading the Devil's mind.

_**"She's a cocky little brat, isn't she?"**_ Heimdall said.

_"Well, like how one of Linkin Park's best songs goes; 'in the end, it doesn't even matter'. I'm not joining her peerage, no matter what she offers me."_ Sean enforced his previous decision as he came to his answer.

"Alright then. Fair's fair, after all." Sean acquiesced her request. Rias' small smile grew a bit bigger as she heard his acceptance.

"Very well, then. Let's go in and deal with this Stray." she told everyone around her.

"Yes, ma'am." everyone else said in sync. Sean held a momentary grimace as he heard the simultaneous reply. He shook it off as he followed the Devils inside the Stray's lair. The door closed, causing the entire place to turn pitch black dark, which was a problem for Sean's human eyes. He squinted to try and better get a look of his surroundings.

_"Dammit! I can't see shit in here! Thoth, can you increase my eye's sensitivity to light?"_ Sean asked.

_**"Yes. Since the eyes are related to the brain, I can reconfigure its working to amplify them to give you night vision."**_ Thoth explained to Sean as the Mind Stone shined in the darkness. Sean's sight began to improve and the darkness that blocked his vision began to disappear, at least in his eyes.

The house's interior was a wide open area with a few columns around the place that made it look more like an auditorium than a house. He also saw chandeliers on the ceiling, its glass decorations had small gleams coming from them as some moonlight shined through them. So far, no sign of the Stray in question. But with the Power Stone, Sean could feel its presence somewhere inside with them.

"Issei." Rias said suddenly. Issei snapped his attention to his Devil master.

"Yes, Miss President?" he asked her.

"I want you to observe with Sean. You're still new at all this, so it would be better for you to watch and learn." Rias told him. Issei nodded at her orders as he walked over to Sean.

"Now, do either of you know the game of chess?" she asked her servant and the human.

"I played it, but I suck at it." Issei answered.

"I have too. Played some games with my mom back in the States." Sean gave his own reply.

"As the master, I'm the King. My empress is the Queen; my cavalier, the Knight; my tank, the Rook; my clergyman, the Bishop; and my foot soldier, the Pawn. Devils with titles and nobility grant the characteristics of these pieces to each one of their servants." Rias explained to the two boys.

_"So her servants have the abilities of the pieces in a chess game."_ Sean thought.

_**"Yes. But pay attention to her. She'll tell you all about it just as well as I can."**_ Thoth told his host.

"All of these pieces are called 'Evil Pieces'." she finished.

_**"Sean, the Stray is approaching us."**_ Morrigan warned.

"It's here." Koneko flatly said out loud at the same time.

**"Now, what could that foul, fecal smell be? Something smells quite delicious too. But wait. What's this?"** an ominous voice announced but stopped as there was also the sound of something sniffing the air.

**"This other scent! It's so divine! It's the best thing I've ever smelled in my life! I bet whatever it is tastes even better! I have to have it!"** the voice said joy, hunger, and even a bit of lust. A figure appeared out of the shadows and revealed itself to be the naked upper body of a beautiful woman with long black hair and grey eyes. She looked human from her head to her waist. Her hands had long, sharp fingernails that were painted red and looked like they would rip people to shreds.

"Tig ol' bitties! OW!" Issei exclaimed as he saw the Stray's nude breasts. Sean slapped him out of his perverted revelry.

"Stay focused! This could turn into a life or death situation, if you're not careful!" the human tried to keep his lechering friend's head in the game. Issei rubbed the back of his head, trying to soothe the pain. He realized that Sean was right. He's been in a few life-threatening situations himself, but he still couldn't control his own mind from appreciating pair of tits.

"Viser, you wretch! You betrayed your master and ran away to fulfill the lustful wants and desires that have now consumed you! Your sins are unforgivable! In the name of the house of Gremory, begone or die!" Rias declared with, what Sean considered, an unnecessary speech. Sean let out a huge sigh of irritation as he couldn't believe the uncalled for theatrics.

_"¥1000 says that she practiced that speech in front of a mirror."_ Sean mentally told the gods in annoyance.

_**"That's a fool's bet, if there ever was one."**_ Thoth replied.

The Stray Devil Viser didn't even pay attention to Rias as she kept smelling the air around her. She was most likely locating the source of the divine scent she was talking about earlier. After a few seconds, she then found it and looked over to Issei and Sean.

**"You."** she said simply as she pointed her finger towards the duo. Issei got excited at the thought of a statuesque woman wanting him and was gushing at the gesture with perverted glee.

**"You, with the golden glove."** Viser called out to the human. Issei was immediately crushed at having his fantasy ruined just by being right next to Sean. The American looked side-to-side in fake confusion and pointed to himself. Viser grew a sultry smile at getting the wonderful smelling human.

**"Yes, you. You silly boy. How about we have some fun before I get a little taste of you?"** Viser offered herself to the human while grabbing her breasts and massaging them, showcasing her lust to her soon-to-be prey.

_**"Who does this whore think she is?! Trying to seduce Sean like that?!"**_ Morrigan shouted in outrage as her motherly instincts kicked in.

Sean, after seeing the rest of her body from within the shadows, shuddered as he was horrified at the thought of even thinking of being anywhere near the freak known as Viser. A few moments of silence passed as all the Devils in the room looked at Sean for his answer. The human simply used his index fingers and put them together, perpendicular to each other in the form of a cross.

"Begone." he said in the flatest tone he could muster. Viser froze in shock and stared at the human that rejected her. The shock soon turned into rage as her face began to change. Her ears became pointed, the sclera went from white to black, but the most prominent change was her teeth becoming razor-sharp much like a piranha's.

She soon stepped out of the shadows, revealing her lower body. She looked like a centaur from the waist down. A horse-like body with her front legs in the shape of large humanoid arms with sharp claws glowing in the same color as her nails and a snake for a tail. She glared at the human with the anger she had.

**"Then I'll just kill you and eat your corpse!"** Viser screamed as she grabbed her breasts again. Her nipples started to glow and magic circles appeared in front of them. Her nipples became erect as the magic circles started to spin faster until a yellow blast fired from both of her breasts, aiming for Sean.

Sean pushed Issei out of way, far enough to avoid the blasts while Sean used the Space Stone and created a portal beneath his feet. He fell into the portal as the nipple blasts went past his previous position and hit the wall behind him. Issei looked at the wall that the blasts hit and saw that they were dissolving the wall like acid. Issei was disgusted at the end result of the nipple blasts and started looking around for Sean while Viser did the same.

**"Where did he go?"** Viser asked as she started sniffing the air.

"I believe you've got bigger problems to worry about. Kiba!" Rias told the Stray and signaled Kiba to attack. The blonde prepared himself with his hand on the sword on his hip and he flashed out of sight.

Sean was watching this from a safe distance on one of the chandeliers on the ceiling. The Time Stone was now glowing and everything in the room slowed down dramatically, expect Kiba who was moving at what Sean perceived as normal speed.

_"Well, he's fast."_ Sean commented on the sword-wielding Devil.

_**"From what the Gremory Devil is saying, that boy is a Knight. His main attribute is speed and their primary weapon is a sword."**_ Chronos relayed the Devil's words to his host. With the Time Stone slowing everything down to keep up with Kiba, Rias herself was talking slower than a snail's pace. But the Greek time god could understand what she was saying and told this to Sean in her stead.

Kiba was running towards Viser while the Stray hardly saw him coming. The Knight stopped in front of her and unsheathed his sword. He swung it twice and in those swings, slashed off the Stray's front legs. But it all happened so slowly, as Sean saw Viser had hardly registered the attack from Kiba.

After seeing Kiba back away from the screaming Stray, Sean deactivated the Time Stone, causing everything to speed back up. This caused Viser to scream in pain and blood to spew everywhere from her large lower body while the now useless limbs laid on the ground, limp. The human now saw Koneko slowly approach the Stray. Sean quirked his eyebrow in confusion as he saw this.

_"Weird, she doesn't seem to be worried about the Stray at all."_ Sean said, slightly worried about his junior's safety. Viser shifted her pain and anger onto the smaller target that presented herself. Her lower body right below her humanoid waist opened, revealing a secondary set of larger, yet equally sharp teeth. Viser rushed at Koneko and her lower mouth quickly ate her.

Sean and Issei's eyes both widened at the display while Rias had a smile on her face.

"Don't worry, Issei. It's alright." Rias said, no longer slowed down by the Time Stone. Sean and Issei looked at Viser's lower mouth and saw that it was struggling to stayed closed. A few moments later, it opened to reveal Koneko with her clothes slightly ripped and covered in a bit of saliva, but otherwise okay. She pried open her gross dental cage, seemingly with ease.

"Koneko is my Rook. Her attribute is simple, unparalleled strength and endurance. That attack won't even put a dent in her." Rias explained to her servant. Both Issei and Sean let out their own sighs of relief, knowing that Koneko would be OK.

"See you on the flip side." the Rook said in her usual monotonous voice as she threw a single punch at the Stray's lower mouth, shattering nearly all of its teeth as Viser once again screamed in pain. The force of Koneko's punch caused the Stray to fly all the way to the other side of the building, destroying one of the columns along the way.

_**"Such strength from a little girl! She would make a great ally on the battlefield!"**_ Heimdall commented as the god was surprised at the feat of strength from the white-haired girl.

"Not to self: Do NOT piss off Koneko." Issei said to himself out loud as Sean wordlessly nodded in agreement from his glimmering perch.

"Akeno." Rias called out to the ravenette, signaling her own turn was up.

"Oh, is it my turn? How exciting! I do so love this game!" Akeno giggled with a smile on her face. Though the way Sean saw it, it was not a kind smile. Rather it was a smile that showcased great pleasure in causing pain.

From behind Issei and Rias, Sean saw that one of Viser's amputated arms was twitching. It soon moved with a will of its own. Sean was about to get it, but stopped when Issei noticed the limb about to pounce on its targets.

"Look out!" he called out to Rias. He then ran to her side as the limb on about to be upon her.

"Sacred Gear!" Issei shouted as the red gauntlet appeared on his left hand and punched the sentient limb away from his redheaded master. Rias herself was surprised that she didn't notice that she was in danger. She ended up on the ground from Issei pushing her out of the way.

"Thanks for that, Issei." she told him, grateful for protecting her. Issei rubbed the back of his head as he got nervous from the praise he received.

"No problem. It's like my body did that on its own." he sheepishly replied. Rias stood back up on her feet and walked to his side, getting right back to the business at hand.

"Akeno. Finish her off, please." she called out to her friend, having enough of the Stray.

"I've got news for you. You're not the only one who likes to play rough here. So how about we have some fun?" Akeno told Viser as she held her hands in front of her, lightning sparking from her palms.

"Akeno is my Queen. Her attributes are a perfect combination of the Knight, Rook, and Bishop. Making her my most powerful piece on the board." Rias told Issei. Viser looked at Akeno with a bit of fear as the Queen walked up to her prone body.

"Aren't you a tough one? Perfect! That means I get to play more!" Akeno said with glee as she put her hands in the air, the lightning getting stronger than before. More lightning came down from the ceiling, striking the Stray and causing her screams of pain to continue. Sean jerked back, trying not to get hit a wayward bolt by accident.

"She mostly uses her magical power, but that's not all." Rias explained further.

"These screams! They're getting me so hot right now!" Akeno spoke out shamelessly as she lasciviously her lips.

"She's really into S&M." Rias finished. Issei was a little intimidated by this new piece of info while Sean had a small blush of fear and excitement as well. When push came to shove, Sean could be a little sadistic in battle. A little trait he picked up from Morrigan when he got into some payback fights after getting the Infinity Gauntlet. After getting beat up by the bullies back home, the feeling of satisfied vengeance he got from them was intoxicating.

_**"Ooh! I like her!"**_ the Celtic goddess approved of the Queen's playful display of pain. _**"You better get her while you can, Sean!"**_ Her host's blush now became one of embarrassment at Morrigan's teasing.

_**"Well, she's certainly kinky. I wonder who's going to be the dom, if you two do hook up."**_ Izanagi wondered. Izanami didn't make a motion to dope slap her husband like she usually does when he makes perverted remarks.

_**"What's this, Izanami? Not going to get onto Izanagi for what he said?"**_ Thoth asked in surprise. The Shinto goddess shook her head in denial.

_**"No. I know that he's genuinely wondering about it. Besides, after today, I'll let it slide just this once."**_ Izanami defended her inaction. Izanagi let out a small sigh, glad he avoided his wife's wrath for today.

_**"But that just means I'll have to hurt him double, if he does it again." **_she added nonchalantly. And just like that, the Shinto god's fear came crawling back, just like the chill he got from the piercing glare that Izanami gave him that promised unimaginable pain.

Sean looked back down at Akeno as her electric onslaught continued. Viser still kept screaming and Akeno's blush and arousal kept growing.

"That's enough, Akeno." Rias ordered her Queen. The lightning stopped and the Stray fell back down to the ground.

"Aww! Over already?" Akeno groaned in disappointment. She turned to face the others with her hand on her face while her blush lessened in color but remained on her cheeks. "I was just starting to enjoy myself." she finished with another small giggle.

Rias strolled over to the downed Stray. She stopped right in front of Viser as she lost all of her previous strength.

"Any last words?" Rias asked her with her hand on her hip. Viser looked up to stare the redhead down.

**"Let me have just a small taste of that boy before you kill me."** the Stray asked with a small glimmer of hope. She couldn't stop thinking about the scent she smelled from the human. She had to know how he tasted. Rias narrowed her eyes at the Stray's disgusting request.

"Forget it." she simply said as she spread her arms and a magic circle appeared in front of her.

"Checkmate."

With that one word, Rias unleashed a wave of red and black energy that engulfed Viser until she was completely eradicated.

"Well, that's that." Rias said to her servants. Issei looked around the room. He didn't see Sean at all after he pushed him out of the way of that nipple blast.

"Wait a sec, where's Sean?" he asked everyone. They all started looking around the room, searching for the human. They didn't see hide or tail of the American anywhere.

"You know the thing about most people..." his voice shouted out to the Devils, spooking them. They figured he probably took off after he made his portal from earlier.

"is that they never think to look up." he finished. At the hint, the Devils looked to the ceiling as they saw Sean sitting on one of the chandeliers.

"Did you enjoy the show?" Rias asked him with a friendly tone. Sean created a portal below his feet with the other end appearing on the ground and slid off of his crystal seat. He then shot off the ground out of the other end of the portal in front of the Devils as the portal itself disappeared and the human landed on his feet.

"Yes, I did. And I have to say, you guys aren't half bad." he complimented the Devils on their abilities. Rias herself had some pride in reaction to the human's praise.

"So, Sean Harris. After seeing the power that can be acquired by my Evil Pieces, would you like to join my peerage?" she offered once again. Sean's impressed attitude quickly vanished after what Rias asked him. He looked at her with narrow eyes, just like the last time she asked.

"No." he repeated, giving the Devil the same answer to her similar offer. Rias couldn't believe what she just heard. After seeing her servants in action, she was sure that the American would change his mind.

"Why not?! Weren't you amazed at the talents my servants have?!" she question with disbelief and a bit of irritation.

"That's just it. 'Servants'. I already told you, I'm no one's servant. My life is my own and I'll live the life I want, with no one else dictating how I should live it." Sean argued, his mind unwavering at the offerings Rias tried to give him.

As they were arguing, the other humanoid front leg of Viser was still there. Behind Sean. It was twitching back to life, just like its twin. Its nails started to glow and prepared to strike at the human with his back turned. Issei noticed the limb trying to take its body revenge on the Devils that killed it.

"SEAN, BEHIND YOU!" Issei yelled out. The other Devils noticed the arm as well as it shot through the air towards its human target.

With the Time Stone glowing on the thumb of the Infinity Gauntlet, everything besides Sean slowed to a crawl. He looked behind him to see the offending front leg in the air with its claws primed to strike. Sean pulled his left arm back for a punch. The Time Stone stopped glowing while the Power Stone shined in its place. Time moved normally again as Sean threw his fist toward the limb.

In a display of unbelievable power, the punch completely destroyed arm-like leg and turned it into nothing more than a bloody stain on the far wall. The Devils were in shock to see that the human in front of them effortlessly finished off the last piece of the Stray that took all of them together to take down.

Akeno had her mouth slightly open as her blush from earlier came back almost as strong as when she was shocking the Stray.

Kiba's eyes widened at the strength the human showed as he remembered his comment back when he showed them the Power Stone and started to think that he grossly underestimated the human.

Koneko's expression was the most tame as expected. Her eyes narrowed as she saw that this human seemed to be stronger than her. She punched the Stray's body and broke almost all of its lower teeth. Sean just turned an arm into a bloody and visceral puddle.

Issei's was the most visual. His eyes turned into saucers and his mouth became slack-jawed so much that Sean thought it would drop off his face.

However, none of them was more dumbstruck than Rias. After seeing the human's action, not only did she want his power even more than before, but she began to question if she could even reincarnate him as a Devil at all. She had only seen a handful of people with the kind of strength that Sean possessed, people that were far more powerful than her.

Sean relaxed his stance, seeing the threat on his life had ended and turned to face the Devils. Their faces were so amusing to the human. He thought they couldn't imagine he would have this kind of power before now. But he put his merriment aside as he faced Rias.

"It doesn't matter what you offer me. I'm not going to be your servant. Not now, not ever." Sean spoke with finality. The Space Stone shined as he thrusted his fist in front of him and created another portal. He walked right through it and the portal as well as the human disappeared from the Devils' sight.

Rias shook the shock out of her system and faced her servants. "Well, that was something. Let's go home now." she pointed out as she created a large transportation circle on the floor and everyone moved inside it.

Rias looked back at the stain that was once Viser's severed arm and got a slight chill.

_"If he could do that with hardly any effort, how strong would he be at his best?"_ she thought in both hopeful and slight fear. As she had this thought, the transportation circle flashed and all the Devils disappeared back to the ORC.

**This looks like a good stopping point! Over 11000 words! My longest chapter ever in both stories! I hope I can keep that bar up there! Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I especially want to hear your thoughts about the romantic part with Izanagi and Izanami and also the short display of power I had Sean do. Don't worry, full fights with Sean are coming! Just be patient and I'll do my best to make you all proud!**

**About your thoughts on what parts I told you about, remember.**

**CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM ONLY! NO FLAMES!**

**As always, Fav/Follow/Review. These things will give me the strength to stay alive in FanFiction!**

**See you next time!**


	6. Chapter 6: Behind Enemy Lines (Part 1)

**I'm back with another chapter! Honestly, when I updated my MHA story, I was disappointed that I barely got any Favs or Follows. Oh well, not every chapter is gonna be popular.**

**I've had people ask me about the Finger Snap. Though, if you saw the summary for this story, My OC is strong and will eventually become OP. I know that the Infinity Gauntlet is the most OP weapon in the Marvel Universe, but it would seem boring to just have him constantly beat up every bad guy that crossed his path. Though, I will admit that One Punch Man is good using that method. Still, my story.**

**I will be using the Finger Snap, but not in the way that everyone's talking about. At least not yet. **

**This story actually hit the 50 reviews mark! Thank you all for telling me your opinions and feedback! Anyway, time to answer them!**

**ClearwingYuta: Yeah. Humans don't really get a spotlight in DxD, except for the Hero Faction. I will try to make them a bit more prominent in this story.**

**OnetimeMuffin: (covering ears with my hands) Yes, but don't tell me anything! I haven't seen it yet and I HATE SPOILERS!**

**Transformer 18: I respect your opinion, but like I said, I wrote Sean liking Akeno because she's my favorite girl. Well, I try not to add too many OCs because I can never keep up with all of them. I understand that having the ORC harem is bland, but they are the main characters in DxD.**

**MrKristoffer1994: Yes, he will. That is the main idea with the Infinity Gauntlet, but that won't happen for a while.**

**OechsnerC: I'm not giving away any spoilers for the Infinity Stones.**

**duked: Thanks for your input, but I already know how the Infinity Gauntlet was created.**

**Drake and GGPD: Keep reading and you'll find out.**

**StormMaster567: I already PM'd you about this.**

**TehStorm: I did say that he was on par with High-Class Devils, but I never said which one. There are plenty of them in DxD, but their actual power levels are all different.**

**TehDIGI: Sorry you feel that way. I was just never a fan of Rias in DxD.**

**lio4567892012, Giltlawyer9000: Thanks for your support!**

**Alright, I'll shut up now and let you read.**

**Chapter 6: Behind Enemy Lines (Part 1)**

It was a few days after the fight with the Stray as Sean was sleeping in his bed. When his host got back to his apartment, Heimdall was disappointed about Sean not stretching out the fight against the Stray Devil. The Norse god may have been a guardian, but he was also a proud warrior who lived for battle.

The morning sun shined in through his blinds of his bedroom window. Sean winced as the light hit his eyes, although it seemed brighter than usual. He opened his eyes and immediately closed them as the brightness of the room made it seem like he was staring directly at the sun.

"AHHH!" Sean yelled out in pain as he covered his eyes with his hand. He started feeling around for his glasses, patting his hand on the bedside table.

_"Thoth, you forgot to return my eyes back to normal!"_ Sean told the Egyptian god, still protecting his eyes from the offending sunlight.

_**"Sorry. Just wait a minute. I'll fix it." **_Thoth assured in a tired tone. Sean waited as the pain started to die down. After that, he took his off his eyes and opened them. The sunlight didn't blind him again as he looked around the room. He then saw his glasses on the table next to him and placed them on his face.

_"That's better. Thanks, Thoth."_ Sean said. The knowledge god gave his host a nod as he went back to sleep. They may have been spirits in the Infinity Stones, but they wanted to retain some of their habits when they were in their physical bodies. It's why they had beds in each of their seperate rooms; to sleep when their host did. Unless they wanted to talk with him in his dreams. But they also had their own ways of spending time when Sean was awake.

Heimdall had his weapons, practicing and maintaining them; Morrigan enjoyed wearing fashionable clothes; Thoth loved reading books from his library; Izanagi and Izanami wanted to spend time with each other as the married couple they were; and Yama spent every day meditating in peace and quiet. Sean wasn't sure what Chronos did, but the time god told him that he wouldn't be interfering with his host's life as he did whatever he did.

Sean looked inside his mindscape and saw that everyone was still sleeping, so he decided to let them sleep. It was a day off today, so he decided to just relax and take it easy for today. Sean figured that Heimdall could let him skip training for today.

He went to the kitchen to get some breakfast. Opening the fridge, Sean saw that he was out of a few things. He got a piece of paper and a pen to make a list for the store later today. After finishing his shopping list, the American took out some eggs and some frozen waffles. He liked eating the traditional Japanese breakfasts. But, to him, nothing could beat the simple meals of home.

_**"Morning, Sean. Already making breakfast?"**_ Morrigan said, waking up from her slumber. Her host was cracking a pair of eggs, cooking them on a skillet he placed on the stove and placed a pair of froen waffles in his toaster.

_"Morning, Morrigan. Yeah, I also need to head down to the store and stock up on some things."_ Sean replied as he poured himself a glass of milk, finishing off the container and adding "Milk" to his shopping list.

_**"You should add some fruits and vegetables to that list. Remember what I said about healthier eating habits."**_ Thoth told his host.

_"Right, Thoth. I'll get on that."_ Sean said as he wrote down "Apples", "Bananas", "Lettuce", and "Tomatoes" on the list. He felt like having some tacos for dinner tonight, so he also jotted down "Ground Beef", "Shredded Cheese", "Salsa", and "Hot Sauce". The eggs on the skillet finished frying on the stove, sunny-side up as well as the waffles popping out of the toaster in a crispy golden-brown. Coating the waffles with maple syrup, Sean's breakfast was complete and ready to eat.

**XXXXX**

Finishing his morning meal, Sean decided to knock out his shopping now so he could do whatever he wanted for the rest of the day. He reached the store and started gathering the things on his list. Gathering all of the items on said list, Sean calculated the total of all the groceries in his head, took out his wallet, and used the red Reality Stone to change the blank slips of paper into Yen notes.

The human was on his way back to his apartment with a shopping cart, full of his food. Since his apartment was a little out of the way from the store, the manager allowed Sean to take the cart he was using to take his groceries home, so long as he brought the cart back after he was done with it. But he might take a little while longer than usual as he ran into someone that he didn't think he would see outside of school.

"Harris. This is a surprise." Souna Shitori said to Sean as she made her way inside the store. Sean let out a mental groan of annoyance as he noticed the demonic Student Council President.

_"Why didn't you warn me she was nearby?"_ Sean asked Morrigan, questioning her negligence of sensing the Devil.

_**"It's just like I told you when you asked me about not telling you she was a Devil at all. She's not really a threat to us."**_ Morrigan defended herself. _**"I know what you're going to say, but you should at least be nice to her. Don't project your irritation from Rias on her."**_ Sean sighed as he knew that the Celtic goddess was right. Rias was the one pushing her recruitment drive on him, not Souna.

"Hey Shitori. Fancy seeing you away from the Academy." the human said to the bespectacled Devil. She had a small smile on her face as Sean returned her greeting.

"Yes, I was planning on buying some groceries for my home. And it seems like you've just done the same." Souna explained.

"Yeah, I was just on my way home actually."

"I see. Well, I'll leave you to your devices." Souna walked past Sean and went toward the store. Sean thought about what Morrigan said and he wanted to speak to Souna about her possibly attempting to convince him to join her peerage.

"Actually, if you give me a second, I needed to talk to you about something." Sean suggested. Souna was a little taken back at the authority-opposing human that would frequently skip class to sleep outside.

"Very well." she assented. Sean looked around and saw a few people, but was far enough away for him to be ignored. He found an alleyway and gestured to Souna to follow him, which she did.

"May I ask why we're here?" Souna queried to the American.

"Well, because I know who you are, or rather, _what_ you are. Miss Devil." Sean told her, exposing her race. Souna's eyes widened as she was once again taken back, now by being found out of her true self. She was about to fire off more questions when Sean raised his hand, stopping her in her tracks.

"Relax, I haven't told anyone and I'm not going to. I just figured that since I know a secret of yours, that you should know a secret of mine." Sean said. Souna had a slight curious expression as she heard him.

Sean then summoned his Infinity Gauntlet while Souna stared at it in intrigue. The Space Stone on the human's index knuckle glowed bright blue. He then punched the air in front of him and opened a portal that lead inside his apartment. He didn't want to give away its exact location to Souna on the off chance she would tell Rias about it. Then, he pushed the shopping cart inside his kitchen. He then exited the portal from inside his home and dismissed it with a wave of his hand. Souna, meanwhile, stood in awe that the human before her displayed such skill with his Sacred Gear.

"What was that?" she asked Sean.

"That was my Infinity Gauntlet." he told her. "Listen, the only reasons I'm telling you all this because that you probably know about my power already and that you didn't try to convince me to be a Devil. So, I'm just going to get it out of the way. I only ask that you keep this between us and that I'm not going to join your peerage."

Souna nodded at his exposition. Rias had told her about the human's Sacred Gear, but didn't really get into the finer details of it. Most likely, to keep Souna in the dark while Rias tried to get him into her own peerage. "Very well."

Sean sighed in relief at her accepting his conditions. They started walking towards the store as the American began giving Souna the same rundown he gave Rias. The same capabilities that he mentioned, though he didn't give any demonstrations because of where they were. Souna didn't say anything as she listened to the human's every word of his Sacred Gear. Internally, she was impressed of what the Infinity Gauntlet could do. Sean finished his run-through as he waited to hear what the Devil had to say.

"That is quite the repertoire you have. Though, I wonder. Why would you tell me all this?" Souna asked.

"It's just like I said. You probably already know about it and you're not bugging me about joining your peerage, like Rias." the human told her.

"It's true. Rias did tell me about your Sacred Gear. She's been throwing herself into learning everything about it. Though, I ask you to not to be so hard on her. She's my friend and she has her reasons for being so aggressive about that." the Devil explained, trying to justify the redhead's behavior.

Sean couldn't wrap his head around that. What possible reason could Rias have to try so hard in getting him to join her? He then looked at Souna and asked the pertinent question on his mind.

"And you? Are you going to persuade me into joining you?"

Souna glanced back at the human. At first, she did think about doing that. But then she realized who she was dealing with and what she said to Rias when she told Souna about doing the same thing. She soon dismissed the idea of dealing with the human with authority issues.

"No. I thought about doing it, but then I realized you would most likely refuse right away. I even told Rias 'good luck' when she started trying." Souna told Sean as she adjusted her glasses. Sean had Thoth read her mind and he discovered that she was telling the whole truth.

Sean smiled at the sincerity of the Devil, surprised that she didn't try to manipulate the conversation toward offering a place in her peerage. The human started to see the Student Council President in a slightly better light.

"Thank you. Now, you're going to keep your part of this little deal?" he asked her. Souna walked ahead of the American, causing him to stop. The Devil had a serious expression on her face.

"Yes. I, Souna Shitori, or rather Sona Sitri, swear that I will honor my end." she declared. Sean was a little surprised that she would express her merit like she did, given her usual stoic attitude.

"OK. Thanks for that." Sean replied awkwardly.

Sona cleared her throat as she regained her prim and proper self. Normally, she wasn't this dramatic, but she was a woman of her word.

"Pardon me for that. It seems that some of Rias' tendencies are rubbing off on me." she said, embarrassed of her actions. She didn't usually make such grand statements.

"It's OK. At least you're not doing it during a fight. Rias made this whole speech to this Stray Devil about how its sins were unforgivable or something along those lines. Felt like she actually rehearsed it." Sean told Sona as he let out a small laugh at the end of it. Sona just smiled at her childhood friend's actions. They eventually arrived at their destination while Sona faced Sean.

"Thank you for indulging my curiosity. And I meant what I said earlier, I won't say a word about what you told me. Nor will I ask you to join my peerage." Sona thanked the human. Sean nodded his thanks at her sincerity.

"Thanks again. See you around." Sean said as he turned around and gave the Devil a wave over his shoulder as he started to head home to put away his groceries. He was lucky that he didn't buy any frozen food as he went toward the nearest alleyway to create a portal back his apartment.

**XXXXX**

Sean was walking around town after he finished putting up all the food he bought. He had a feeling of relief when he was finally listening to his music. Dealing with all the supernatural, he really needed to relax with a little Seether. The song Sean chose was "There's Nobody Praying For Me". A depressing song perhaps, but it still had that slow pace that calmed the American down.

As Sean continued his stroll through Kuoh, he wondered what he should do today. He heard that the new Mortal Kombat 11 came out recently, so he decided to go down to GameStop. Sometimes, Sean went down there when he had nothing else to do and just looked through their inventory. He even rearranged the game cases because he felt that they should be in their original alphabetical places.

Sean purchased the game and made his way back to his apartment, holding the bag that contained Mortal Kombat 11. He couldn't wait to see what the story for this game entailed. Sean was more about the story than the gameplay when it came to video games, but he did play online with others if he ever got bored.

_**"Sean. Would you care to explain to us why you showed that Sitri girl, a Devil, the Infinity Gauntlet?"**_ Chronos demanded from his host. He couldn't believe the sheer stupidity of Sean, giving away his Sacred Gear to someone. Even when he says that he wanted to be left alone from the supernatural world.

Sean stopped his music as he heard the irate time god. He sighed at the earful he received, though he was beating himself up for the same reason.

_"I don't know. I really don't know why I did that."_ Sean told the Greek god. Usually, he kept to himself about everything in his life. But not an hour earlier, he told his biggest secret to the very same kind of person he didn't want to share it to.

_**"Not only that, but you seem to be engaging in more socializing than you normally do."**_ Thoth spoke up.

_**"Well, I'm just happy that you're finally making some friends! Even though, one is a perverted reincarnated Devil. But still, beggars can't be choosers."**_ Morrigan cheerfully said.

Sean frowned at the mention of Issei. Was he really friends with him? He never really talked with the pervert on friendly terms before. In fact, the American did things that made life harder on him. Especially when it came to his peeping tendencies. He figured that Issei wouldn't ever talk to him, yet in the last few days, he actually seemed concerned about his classmate. Sean just couldn't understand it. Why would Issei be worried about someone that made his life miserable? Even more confusing, why would Sean actually talk to Issei?

"Hey, Harris!"

_"What the hell? How do we keep running into each other?" _Sean thought in annoyance as he faced the center of both the voice and his mental bewilderment. Issei Hyoudou. However, he wasn't alone as right beside him was Asia as she carried a stuffed animal that looked like a mouse.

"Hey, Hyoudou. Hey, Asia." the human replied as he greeted the Devil and the nun.

"Hello, Harris." Asia said to Sean with a smile, happy to see her other friend that showed her to the church.

"So, what are you two doing today?" Sean asked them.

"Well, I'm just showing Asia around Kuoh. We just came from the arcade." Issei told him.

"Yes. I thought the weather was nice today, so I decided to enjoy the day." Asia started with a smile, though Sean could tell that it was forced. "Then I ran into Issei at the park. He took me to a fast food restaurant and we had cheeseburgers that we could eat with our hands. He also took me to an arcade and won this mouse for me." she said to Sean, the happiness she exuded from her activities put a smile on Sean's face.

"Well, I'm glad that you're having fun." he said. Though, he was a little worried about if Asia knew that Issei was a Devil.

"Hey, Issei. Can I talk to you about something?" Sean asked the Devil. Issei nodded and turned to Asia, telling her that he would be back. The two boys walked a little bit away from Asia while keeping her in sight as she sat on a nearby bench.

"So, what's going on? Does she know that you're a Devil?" Sean asked. Issei looked down as he remembered the moment Asia found out about that. It wasn't a pleasant memory.

"Yeah, she does." Issei said. Sean looked over to the nun, who was waiting patiently for the boys to return. She was still hugging the stuffed mouse that Issei got for her. The two walked back towards Asia.

"Asia, you know that Issei's a Devil, right?" Sean asked the nun, straight out. Asia was surprised to hear that the human knew of her Devil friend's race.

"You know, too?" she queried. Sean nodded at the nun.

"Are you OK with that? Having a Devil for a friend?" he asked her. Asia hugged the stuffed mouse tighter as she remembered the times she spent with Issei.

"Yes. I don't mind that Issei's a Devil. Growing up in the church, I was taught that Devils were evil. But then, after what Issei did for me, I knew he couldn't be like that." Asia explained. Sean was curious about what she meant by "what Issei did for her", but he dismissed it.

"Well, OK then. I need to get back home and start making dinner. You two enjoy your date." Sean told them as he walked away, waving his hand over his shoulder. At that, Issei was shouting at the human that he was mistaking their situation while Asia had a blush from the implication.

**XXXXX**

Sean was approaching his apartment, after leaving Issei and Asia. The date thing was just a joke that he played on the two. He was laughing from hearing Issei's denial of his situation and he could only imagine how Asia reacted.

_**"That was such a devious thing to say."**_ Morrigan said to Sean.

_"Oh please. Like you're one to talk about teasing."_ he countered. Morrigan said nothing in her defense.

_**"Still, it's quite rare to see someone as kind as that nun in the world."**_ Izanami mentioned about Asia's demeanor towards Issei.

_**"I know, right? I just wish you were as kind as her."**_ Izanagi said to his wife. The destruction goddess didn't take that jab lightly as she started pulling on her husband's ear.

_**"OWOWOWOWOW!"**_ Izanagi cried in pain.

_**"I would be nicer if you didn't gawk at every girl that crossed Sean's path."**_ Izanami replied with a dangerous, no-nonsense tone. She refused to let go of Izanagi's ear until he started praising her and begging for her forgiveness.

_**"I wonder what made her so uneasy about why she was with Issei."**_ Thoth wondered as he placed his fingers on his chin in a contemplative manner.

_"Couldn't you have just read her mind about it?"_ Sean asked the knowledge god.

_**"I could have. But it is incredibly rude to do so."**_

_"You did it with Issei and Sona."_

_**"Yes, but they had reasons to lie to you. Issei would've been manipulated by the Gremory girl and the Sitri girl could've been lying about her intentions."**_

Sean surrendered the argument as he just wanted to go home, make his dinner of tacos, play Mortal Kombat 11 and go to sleep.

_**"Sean, something's coming!"**_ Morrigan said to Sean. He looked around and saw that the sky turned to purple, just like the other times with his encounters with the Fallen Angels.

"So, we meet again."

Sean looked up to see a familiar face. The same person that tried to kill him when he ran into Yuuma Amano, Kalawarner, as she landed on the ground, a few feet away from the human.

"You again? Don't you have anything better to do?" Sean asked her in a bored tone. Kalawarner didn't appreciate the audacity that she found in his tone.

"How dare you speak to me like that! You humiliated me the last time we met! I'm here to make you pay for it with your life!" Kalawarner spat in anger at Sean. He sighed at the generic revenge speech that the Fallen Angel gave him.

_"Really? Who does she think she is? She sounds like some kind of villain on a TV show." _Sean thought with a sweatdrop.

_**"Remember, she doesn't know about what you're truly capable of. Supernatural beings always hold themselves higher over people they believe are beneath them, especially humans."**_ Chronos told his host. At that, Sean only got angry that this Fallen Angel thought that she was better than him.

"Though, I have to say. You really gave Mittelt quite the scare. When she came back from trying to kill you, she was shaking and crying. It was so hysterical! That brat really needed a scare like that! It almost made me want to spare you. Almost." Kalawarner told Sean about her Fallen cohort as she let out a laugh, thinking about Mittelt's horrified face.

Sean, however, didn't care about what happened to the self-hyping Fallen Angel. She tried to kill him and whatever happened to her afterward was her own fault. He kept his eyes on Kalawarner as she made a light spear.

"You really don't want to do this." Sean told her with a sigh.

"Oh, I do. I really do." Kalawarner said with a devious smile. She threw the light spear as Sean made the Infinity Gauntlet appear on his left arm with the Power Stone glowing on his middle knuckle and jumped away from the offending spear as it hit the ground.

"That's your Sacred Gear? It looks so gaudy with all that gold and gems." Kalawarner said as she noticed the Gauntlet.

_**"Did that bitch just call us gaudy?!"**_ Izanami screamed out in Sean's head. Her host placed his hand on his forehead, in pain from the sudden shriek.

_**"I think it's high time we show her who she's messing with!"**_ Heimdall suggested, sharing in Izanami's anger of the disrespect from Kalawarner.

Sean smiled as he agreed with Heimdall. He may have taken a lot of shit in his life, but he's not taking any more from anyone. The Space Stone started glowing as he created a small portal and placed the GameStop bag inside, leaving it inside his apartment and safe from damage.

"You want me to fight? Be careful what you wish for." Sean warned the Kalawarner as the Mind Stone on his pinky knuckle glowed bright yellow. He raised his open hand at the Fallen Angel. Kalawarner felt like she was frozen in mid-air. She couldn't move any part of her body to get away.

"W-What?! Why... can't I... move?!" Kalawarner struggled to say as she felt that even her jaw was stiff.

"Because I don't want you to." Sean simply said. Kalawarner looked toward the human. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. This human just stopped her, keeping her in the air. And he did it so effortlessly.

"You know, you'll hurt your neck looking down at me like that." Sean told Kalawarner. He had the Fallen Angel's full attention when he said this. Sean flexed his hand closed, as if grabbing Kalawarner while she was in the air.

"How about I bring you down to my level?" he suggested. Sean threw his fist down. Along with Kalawarner, slamming into the ground with a loud thud. The impact caused a spider's web of cracks on it and a small cloud of dust to pop up around the Fallen Angel.

Kalawarner shook her head, shaking the cobwebs out of it as she got her movement back. She stood up from the crater she made and flew straight toward Sean with another light spear.

The Time Stone glowed on Sean's thumb as Kalawarner started to slow down. Her face showed her rage at the continued humiliation she suffered from her human target. Sean stepped out of the way of the spear that made its way inch by inch, toward his heart. He stopped at Kalawarner's side, a few feet away from her. Time soon sped up to its normal speed as did Kalawarner as she kept flying, this time shoulder first into a tree.

_"What the hell just happened? One second, he was right in front of me. The next, he vanished?" _Kalawarner asked herself as she felt a slight pain from her collision. She couldn't understand it. This human froze her in stasis and then he suddenly disappears in the blink of an eye? She looked around for Sean, only to see him just standing behind her from a distance. He just stood there with a bored expression on his face, not even looking winded. As if this was nothing but a waste of time to him.

Her ire kept increasing as she went back on the offensive, making two smaller light spears in both of her hands and flew at her target again. Sean didn't bother moving as Kalawarner started furiously slashing at the human. The Time Stone started glowing again as he started to dodge every swing the Fallen Angel made.

With every miss, Kalawarner just kept getting angrier at how nonchalantly Sean was treating her attempts to kill him. He must not believed that she was a threat to him. She tried to take off his head by crossing her light spears and slash at his neck. But Sean just slowed her down a little more and took a step back, causing her to miss completely.

_**"Stop toying with her and end this already, Sean."**_ Thoth told his host. The Egyptian knowledge god despised violence, but saw it as necessary when called for it. But right now, his host was just showing off.

_**"I agree with Thoth. This is getting boring, just finish her."**_ Heimdall concurred. Sean was about to do just that as he pulled his Gauntlet-clad fist back while the Power Stone started to glow. Kalawarner was panting from exhaustion from her failed attempts of even placing a single scratch on the human.

"I've... had... ENOUGH OF THIS!" Kalawarner lost any sense of composure she had left and flew with all of her might to Sean, priming a light spear to stab at him.

The distance between the human and Fallen Angel shortened in mere moments. Sean then threw his punch and hit Kalawarner right in her cheek, making her crash into the ground in front of him and made a bigger crater than the one from when Sean slammed her down from in the air.

Surprisingly, Kalawarner was still conscious as she weakly tried to stand up on her own two feet.

"Don't look at me like that!" she screamed at Sean. The human was a little surprised at the harsh tone the Fallen Angel used.

"Don't look down on me like that bastard does!" Kalawarner kept screaming in anger.

Ever since that she was assigned to her mission, Dohanseek always looked down on her and her friends. He just looked at them like they were nothing but people to order around and talk down to, like he was better than them.

She knew that the only reason that she was here was because Dohnaseek convinced Raynare to join him, in hopes of getting in Azazel's good graces. Dohanseek was a major misogynistic pig, always looking at the female Fallen Angels with such perverted gazes. Kalawarner went with Raynare to make sure Dohanseek didn't do anything to her. Mittelt went with her because Raynare was like a big sister to her.

She tried to make another light spear, but she was too hurt to concentrate to do so. She spent the last of her energy with her last attack. After that, she fell to her hands and knees in exhaustion. Sean just looked at her with pity. He read Kalawarner's thoughts and he could understand why she would be angry with him.

_"She really isn't that bad, is she?"_ he asked the gods.

_**"No, she's not. She's just projecting her anger onto you."**_ Yama said, summing up what they learned through the Fallen Angel's thoughts.

Sean said nothing as Kalawarner tried to stand up again. "Look, why are you even doing this? What have I ever done to you?" he asked the haggard woman.

The Fallen Angel glared at the human. "You're a threat to us."

Sean raised an eyebrow at her reasoning. "How am I a threat to you? You know, other than what just happened."

"The power you have is unlike anything I've ever felt. Anyone would feel threatened from it." Kalawarner explained.

"Are you kidding me?! I don't know you and I don't care what you do! As long as you leave me alone, I leave you alone!" Sean countered. The reason that the Fallen Angel gave was idiotic to him.

"It's not that simple. People with Sacred Gears are always targeted because of the power they have. Even if you tried to live a normal human life, you would be hated by every other human just because that you're different from them."

Sean's indignation only grew hearing what Kalawarner just said. "You are really not helping your case. If anything, that sounds better. In case you didn't realize, I am not a social person. I don't really care about being hated, as long as it keeps people away from me."

Even though he was becoming more gregarious, this was how he truly felt. After all the times he was bullied at school and being alone, he embraced the solitary life that was thrust upon him. No one helping him, no one looking in his direction, no one even acknowledging his existence. He was prepared to live out the rest of his days alone. Though, he also felt that the only people he needed in his life were the gods in the Infinity Gauntlet. As long as he had them, then he didn't need anyone else.

Kalawarner just scoffed, seeing the stubbornness of the human. "Whatever. I've done my part." After dragging out the conversation, she recovered just enough to spread her wings to hover in the air and disappear, leaving behind a few floating black feathers.

Sean was relieved that the Fallen Angel vanished from his sight and the barrier was gone. This fight was nothing more than an ordeal and he couldn't be more glad that it was over.

_**"What did she mean by 'done her part'?"**_ Thoth wondered.

_"I don't know, Thoth. But I really don't care."_ Sean groaned out. He really had enough for one day.

_"Honestly, I'm more concerned about playing Mortal Kombat 11. That and I really need to start on dinner."_ he added as he resumed his trek back home.

**XXXXX**

At the ORC, Issei told Rias what had happened to Asia. She was kidnapped by Raynare, or as he knew her, Yuuma Amano. He tried to stop her with his Sacred Gear, but Raynare just laughed at him as it turned out the Devil's Sacred Gear was just a Twice Critical. It didn't matter to him as he tried to protect Asia. However, it was all for nothing as Asia agreed to go with Raynare in exchange for sparing Issei's life. After hearing the recollection, Rias was not pleased.

"Let me try this again! If I say 'don't', you don't!" Rias scolded Issei after she slapped him, leaving a burning imprint on his cheek.

"You have to forget about Asia. You are a member of the Gremory Household now." she lectured her servant. But Issei couldn't do that.

"Fine, then let me out. Because I'm not going to just abandon her." Issei told Rias with a defying glare.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that." she simply said.

"Of course not. I'm your precious Pawn. Can't do without your most important piece, can you?" Issei sarcastically remarked.

"That's enough, Issei!" Rias raised her voice, ending the argument. Issei was taken back by his master's tone.

"Pawns are important, they're not the weakest piece by any means. The Pawn's attribute is called 'Promotion'. If it manages to enter what the King determines as enemy territory, like the church for example, they can 'promote' themselves into any other piece besides the King." She explained to Issei the attribute of his own position in her peerage. Akeno soon entered the room and she walked toward Rias and Issei.

"Now, onto your Sacred Gear's abilities." Rias said, moving the conversation along.

"Yeah, it doubles my power. Yuuma- I mean, the Fallen Angel told me that. So, it kind of works like Harris' Power Stone." Issei mentioned the woman that killed him before he became a Devil.

"I guess it does. Any Sacred Gear works directly works with the emotional state of its user. Meaning, the stronger your emotions are, the more powerful you Sacred Gear will be." Rias told him.

"I didn't know that. That's cool." Issei commented.

Akeno reached Rias, standing right behind her and silently whispered something into her ear. Rias' expression turned serious as she heard what her Queen said.

"Something's come up. Akeno and I have to step out for a moment." Rias said to the room as the two girls started walking toward the open part of the room.

"Wait a minute, I have more questions for you." Issei replied.

"Remember, even if you're promoted, no matter their rank, a single Devil cannot stand up to a Fallen Angel." Rias told Issei. A magic circle appeared beneath her and Akeno's feet as it glowed and the girls disappeared. However, despite her warnings, Issei's mind was already made up.

"Well, we'll see about that." Issei said to himself as he started walking out of the room.

"You're going?" Kiba asked, speaking up for the first time after the lecture.

"Yep. And don't even try to stop me." Issei answered.

"You're going to get killed." Kiba warned.

"As long as Asia's safe, I don't care about that." Issei said.

"That's brave of you. And stupid. It's suicide." Kiba frankly said.

"I told you I don't-" Issei spat but he stopped as Kiba grabbed his sword.

"I'm coming with you. The President said that a single Devil can't take on a Fallen Angel alone, so I'm going to back you up." the Knight told the Pawn.

"What about you, Koneko?" Issei asked the Rook.

"There's nothing else to do." she simply answered. Issei smiled in gratitude knowing that his friends would help him.

"Thanks guys! But there's a stop we have to make before we go to the church." Issei told them. Kiba and Koneko were confused, but went along with him as he told Kiba the address they needed to go to and made a transportation circle to get there.

**XXXXX**

Sean was sound asleep after eating dinner and playing Mortal Kombat 11. He enjoyed the story and he played the arcade ladder a few times. His favorite character in the game was Erron Black. He just enjoyed the concept of a gunslinger in a fighting game, not to mention the trick shots that the outlaw was able to pull off. But the best part was that his Fatalities were improved from his debut in the last MK game.

_**"Sean, wake up. Someone's at the door."**_ Morrigan told her host. Sean opened his eyes as his awareness increased when he started to wake up. He heard someone knocking on the door as he got off his bed.

"Gimme a second!" he called out to the person. The knocks soon turned to pounds when Sean finished putting on some clothes.

"Alright, dammit! Just chill the fuck out!" Sean yelled as he walked to the door, getting pissed off from hearing the constant banging coming from the other side. He reached for the doorknob and opened the door.

"Hyoudou?!"

"Harris-" Issei started off but stopped as Sean raised his hand.

"OK, this has to stop. I don't know how many times we said each other's names like that, but it needs to stop. I'm not making this into a running gag." Sean told Issei. Issei just got confused at the sidetracking of the conversation.

"Anyway, what are you doing here? It's almost midnight." Sean asked as he checked the clock on his phone. The American saw that Issei wasn't alone. Standing behind him was Kiba and Koneko. Kiba held a sword in his hand while Koneko wore fingerless gloves.

"What are they doing here?" Sean asked in an offended tone as his eyes narrowed. "You promised that you wouldn't tell Rias about my apartment and you bring her servants here?! Get the fuck outta my house!" he angrily said to Issei and slammed the door in his face. Issei pounded the door to try and make the human come back.

"Wait! I know I promised I wouldn't tell Rias, but this isn't about her! It's Asia! The Fallen Angels kidnapped her!" Issei shouted through the door. Sean stopped right in his tracks as he heard the Devil's cries. He turned around and opened the door again.

"Come on in. Tell me everything." Sean told the Devils. They entered Sean's apartment and took their seats on Sean's couch. Issei recounted the events of Asia's kidnapping. Sean was angry that the innocent nun being dragged back to the church against her will, even more so when Issei said that Raynare told Asia that "all her troubles will be over".

"Issei, I just have one thing to ask before I decide." Sean said to the pervert.

"What's that?" Issei asked. Sean faced at him with an no-nonsense look in his eyes.

"How far are you willing to go to save Asia?" Issei returned Sean's look with his own with all the conviction and determination he could muster.

"I'd give my life to save her." Sean didn't need Thoth to read his mind to know that he was telling the truth. Sean smiled at the Devil with respect.

"Alright, I'm in." Sean told them. The Devils welcomed the help that the human would bring, if going by what he did in the ORC and against the Stray Devil was anything to go by.

"Let's get going!" Issei told everyone. Sean willed his Infinity Gauntlet onto his left arm as he prepared himself for a fight.

"So, where is she?" Sean wondered about the nun's whereabouts.

"She's being held at the church." Kiba told him. Sean wanted to smack himself in his forehead. It should've been a no-brainer that Fallen Angels would hole up in an abandoned church.

"Let's get going already." Koneko said flatly.

"You better use your Gauntlet, Harris. Our transportation circles only work for the members of the Gremory Household." Kiba suggested.

Sean nodded as the Space Stone glowed in the darkness. The human punched the area in front of him as a portal opened on the wall, revealing trees, bushes, and behind them, the church. Everyone psyched themselves up and walked through the portal.

**And that's the end of part 1! I was going to make this into one chapter, but I didn't want to make it too long. So, you all get a cliffhanger! HAHAHA! Yes, oh, Yes! The tears of unbearable frustration! Mmm... so yummy!**

**Moving on, I have a job interview today and I like my chances of getting it! Unfortunately, this means that it will cut into my writing time. I know you hate me having less time to write this story, but that's life.**

**You all know at this point, but Fav/Follow/Review. After updating Same Dream, New Life, I've been starving for these things. My ego is famished! I don't know how much longer it will last without any positive feedback to feed it! But seriously, I would appreciate it if you guys did all that.**

**See you next time!**


	7. Chapter 7: Behind Enemy Lines (Part 2)

**Wow! It's been a while, huh? Before we get into the story, I got an update for you guys. I got that job I had the interview for! Not a glamorous job, but at least it puts money in my wallet.**

**Sorry for taking so long. I was planning on making the end of this arc one chapter, but it was too long. So, I decided to split it up into two. I'm close to finishing the second one and it will be out soon. Just need to figure out how to end it. Now let's get those reviews answered!**

**calderoneric758: Thanks for that! And I hope you did well on yours!**

**MrKristoffer1994: No spoilers! I do have some thought on how the Riser arc goes. Yes, it is and I hope you like this chapter!**

**fakhri: Thank you...very much...I'll do my best**

**lio4567892012: Thanks! Here it comes!**

**TehStorm: Thanks for your support and advice! I just hope that they will come for both of my stories.**

**Cboylan: Thanks! I will tell you at the end of the next chapter, though no list.**

**Guest: I understand your reasoning for all that, but you'll just have to wait and see.**

**OnetimeMuffin: I thought about it, because the telling Sona part was a more "in the moment" thing. But I realize now that while they may not seem to get along, Sean actually holds more respect for Sona than Rias at that point. Ever since Sean learned that Sona was a Devil, not once did she try to recruit Sean into her peerage like Rias did. And since that he thought that Sona might learn about it eventually, he might as well get it out of the way while making her promise to keep the Infinity Gauntlet a secret.**

**The Storm Master 567: Thanks! It's so hard trying to figure out what the others might say to Sean. Sean will help out others if they genuinely want to help others, not for their own personal gain.**

**RotcehM, ClearwingYuta, OechsnerC, Nattpell02, KingRamses: Thank you!**

**OK, I've kept you all waiting long enough! Feed your starving eyeballs with this chapter!**

**Chapter 7: Behind Enemy Lines (Part 2)**

Sean, Issei, Kiba, and Koneko were hiding in the trees after the human used the Infinity Gauntlet to create a portal to the abandoned church that stood before them. The Power Stone started to glow as Sean wanted to know exactly what they were up against. He felt all sorts of human signatures, however he found only one inside the church. There were also some other energies outside of the church. Sean sensed that they were a ways from the group. They were stronger than the ones in the church, although they were familiar. Fallen Angels. But the most powerful signature was coming from the church only it seemed to be found under it rather than inside the church interior.

"You guys feel that?" Issei asked everybody as he also felt the energies at the church.

"Yeah, there's got to be a ton of priests in there." Kiba answered Issei. Sean got confused as he heard the Knight. He thought that priests only worked for the church. Even if their bosses were once Angels, they were still cast out of Heaven.

_"Priests? Why would they help Fallen Angels?"_ Sean mentally asked.

_**"Well, sometimes priests that have been excommunicated side themselves with the Fallen Angel Faction for lack of other options."**_ Thoth explained to his host. Sean nodded at this in understanding, though he wondered why some priests would even stray from the church if they were so devout.

"Well, I'm glad that you guys are here." Issei told his clubmates and human friend. "Especially you, Harris. I honestly didn't think you would even agree to help us when we showed up at your place."

Sean nodded at the Devil. "I may not want to be a part of the supernatural, but Asia doesn't deserve to be held captive." The American thought about the nun imprisoned inside the church. God only knew what was happening down there.

Kiba smiled at Issei. "Hey, don't even mention it." After he said that, Kiba's eyes turned into a spiteful glare. "Besides, Fallen Angels aren't exactly my most favorite things in the world. Actually, I despise them." Kiba's eyes just became more narrow at the thought of the black winged figures.

"Hey, Issei. There's something that's been bugging me for a while. How did Asia even get mixed up with the Fallen Angels anyway? Did she even tell you?" Sean queried to the pervert. Issei's face became dour as the American put his question forward.

"Well, Asia was abandoned by her parents at a church and she was raised by the nuns there. When she was younger, she found an injured puppy and started praying for it to be saved. It was then that she awakened to her Sacred Gear. After that, she became a religious icon. People would come from across the world to see her so they could be healed and she was happy doing it. But one day, she found someone who was injured. She healed him, but it turned out the person she healed was a Devil. She was branded a heretic, excommunicated, and ran away." Issei gave Asia's story to the human.

After hearing about Asia's life, Sean looked stoic. But on the inside, he was apoplectic. The rage that was boiling inside him from before only intensified after hearing the absolute hypocrisy of the church. They taught her to heal anyone that was sick or injured. But when she healed someone that she didn't even know was a Devil, they turn on her at the drop of a hat?

_**"I understand your anger Sean, but you can't afford to lose your cool now."**_ Thoth told him. His host tried to calm down, but he couldn't focus. All he could think about was tearing down the church in front of him.

_**"Sean. You must relax."**_ Yama told his host. Sean perked at the voice of the taciturn Hindi death god.

_**"Just close your eyes and breathe slowly and deeply, just like I taught you."**_ Yama instructed the American. Sean did as Yama said as he closed his eyes while taking a slow, deep breathe in and then letting it out just as slow as his inhale. Sean could feel his turbulent mind be at ease.

_"Thanks, Yama."_ the Gauntlet holder said to the Soul Stone inhabitant. Yama only nodded in reply and cut the mental connection.

"Harris, are you OK?" Issei asked the human. Sean looked over and saw that everyone else was looking at him with worry.

"Sorry, almost lost my head for second there. Come on, let's go get Asia." Sean told the Devils. They nodded in agreement while Koneko got a head start toward the church's front door.

"What are you doing? We can't just go in." Issei said to the white-haired Devil.

"They already know were here." Koneko said simply as she raised her leg and kicked the doors wide open.

The Devils and the human entered the church. Some moonlight shined through the colored windows around the place. Rows of pews were aligned down the floor, large pieces of rubble were scattered around the place. And at the very back of the interior was an altar and behind that was a large stone cross that was broken. The atmosphere here was the exact opposite of what a church should have. At least, to Sean it did.

"Anyone else feeling creeped out being in here?" Sean asked the others. The Devils just looked at him with a disbelieving look on their faces.

"Right, sorry. Stupid question." he added after thinking about who he asked said question to.

The silence was once again broken by the sound of clapping hands. From the left side of the area came a young-looking man with short white hair and red eyes. Sean assumed he was a priest due to his clerical clothing and the cross necklace.

"So we meet again!" the man said to the group before him. "Glad you could make it! I bet you're all happy to see me, aren't ya?" The tone that he used sounded friendly. But looking into the man's eyes, Sean could feel a deep-seated madness and evil.

"Yeah right!" Issei angrily retorted back to the priest.

"While we're on the subject, let me tell a little something about myself. I like to pride myself on never fighting any Devil more than once. And what do I see? You all just being here, still alive and kicking, rubbing it in my face. And I refuse to be mocked by you maggot Devils in this house of God! So how about we finish this?!" The priest suggested as he pulled out a gun and a sword hilt. The hilt grew its blade and it glowed in the darkness as if it was made of light. Sean sensed holy energy coming from both of the priest's weapons as he readied himself for a fight.

"I'm going to enjoy tearing your flesh apart and eating it for a late-night snack!" the priest said as he held up his gun with his left hand and licked the slide with his tongue.

_**"What a disgusting man!"**_ Morrigan commented on the priest's behavior.

_"Izanami, remember when I told you about the difference between being crazy and being psycho?"_ Sean asked the Shinto goddess.

_**"Yes, and I'm starting to understand what you were talking about. This guy is definitely psycho."**_ Izanami replied. Her host's rampage against dream zombies was nothing compared to the reality of this deranged "holy" man's actions.

"Who the hell is this guy?" Sean asked out loud. The priest had an expression of mock hurt as the human asked for his identity.

"I'm crushed. You didn't even bother to tell your friend who I am? Well, the name's Freed Sellzen, Devil-killing exorcist extraordinaire! And I'm about to send all of you right back to Hell where you belong, you filthy Devil!" Freed said to Sean with an unhealthy amount of enthusiasm.

"Who said I was a Devil?" Sean riposted to the psycho priest. Freed was actually surprised at learning of Sean being human.

"Oh? You're actually a human gallivanting with Devils? Well, it doesn't matter to me, sinner. You'll joining right alongside your Devil buddies into oblivion!" Freed told the human as he had his tongue out.

"Tell me where she is!" Issei demanded from Freed.

"You mean that Devil-loving whore of a sister?" he asked as he looked back toward the altar behind him. How he described Asia only angered Sean and the Devils, but none of them was more infuriated than Issei. "She's beneath the altar right behind me. But before that, you'll have to get through me first."

Issei activated his Sacred Gear and Kiba unsheathed his sword, ready to fight. Koneko, meanwhile, went over the rows of pews and lifted one of them to throw it at the insane priest. When the large wooden projectile was about to reach its target, Freed managed to escape harm by slicing the pew in half.

"Ha! I gotta say. For a runt, you're pretty strong, aren't you?" Freed mockingly commented to Koneko.

"Runt?" she asked while her eyes narrowed in offense. She continued her assault with increased intensity while Issei rushed toward Freed and Kiba jumping into the air and dove down towards the psycho. Sean stayed back to get a better idea on how the deranged man fights. While he had the power to fight Freed and win, Sean has always been more of a smart fighter. Find a weakness and finish off his opponent with a single blow.

Kiba got to Freed first as he brought down his sword on the priest's head. Freed managed to block Kiba's sword and the two started to have their own fight. The priest retaliated with his own slash of his light sword, but the Devil swordsman guarded against it.

"That all you got?" Freed asked the Knight as the madman started using his gun to shoot the Devil while Kiba switched his tactics to dodge all of the holy rounds of Freed's pistol. Kiba then rushed Freed to get past his firing range. He swung his sword while Freed guarded, causing the two to become locked in a struggling clash.

"You're quick." Kiba acknowledged the priest's skill while trying to push through Freed's guard.

"You're not so bad yourself. But, to me, that's just going to make killing you more enjoyable!" Freed returned the Devil's compliment while he stood his ground. But when he finished his threat, he brought his gun up and pointed at Kiba, ready to fire. Kiba noticed the firearm and saw Freed's finger twitch. The Devil backflipped to dodge the holy bullet from the gun, breaking the clash of their swords.

_**"I hate to admit it, but that priest has some skills with a sword."**_ Izanagi begrudgingly gave credit to Freed's swordsmanship.

"Wow, Kiba's like a total badass!" Issei said, impressed with his Devil friend's own aptitude.

"Playing dirty, huh? Well, how about I up the ante?" Kiba suggested as the blade of his sword turned into a pure black. Freed wasn't intimidated by the Devil as he fully stuck out his tongue as he gave an insane, wide-open smile. The two swordsman charged at each other and their swords clashed once more. Only Kiba's sword soon had a reaction to Freed's. Tendrils of darkness emanated from the pitch black sword and the light from Freed's sword started to weaken.

"What the hell is that?" Freed asked in annoyance at seeing his blade start to disappear.

"It's the Holy Eraser, a sword of darkness that devours any holy energy that touches it." Kiba explained as he didn't let up on letting his sword do its job.

"Oh please! Like I'm afraid of a piece of shit Devil like you!" Freed yelled at Kiba as his sword's light to started to flicker.

Sean was slightly impressed that Kiba also had a Sacred Gear, like Issei. And since that Devils are more powerful in darkness, it seemed fitting for a Devil to have such a Sacred Gear.

_**"That isn't his Sacred Gear."**_ Morrigan said suddenly. Sean got confused at the Celtic goddess' words.

_"What do you mean it's not his Sacred Gear?"_ he asked her.

_**"Well, it is and it isn't. It's not that the sword isn't his Sacred Gear. It's more like it was created from his Sacred Gear."**_ Morrigan clarified. Sean nodded with a little understanding, but was still confused about it.

_"So, what is it really?"_

_**"It's called 'Sword Birth'."**_ Thoth spoke up. _**"A Sacred Gear that can create Demonic Swords that can have different abilities, depending on the wielder's imagination. That 'Holy Eraser', as he calls it, is a product of it."**_

_"That _is_ pretty cool. Though, I got a better deal with the Reality Stone. He might be able to create swords, but I can create anything."_ Sean said.

Back to the fight, Freed jumped away from the Demonic swordsman to keep his sword from becoming useless. Sean tried to figure out a physical weakness that Freed would have, but it seemed like he had none.

"Issei!" Kiba called out.

**[BOOST!]** Issei's Sacred Gear called out as he stuck his arm out. The green gem on the back of his hand started to glow in the darkness.

"That's it! I'm done with dealing with this bullshit!" Freed yelled out in anger as he pointed his gun at the pervert.

Issei freaked out a bit, remembering the last time he got shot by the priest. But then he remembered what Rias said about being a Pawn and its attributes.

"Promotion, Rook!" Issei called out. He felt stronger than before as he rushed Freed. The preist started shooting his gun at Issei. Unfortunately, the bullets had no effect on the Devil as the Rook's endurance allowed him to become bulletproof.

"Well, I'm fucked." Freed said simply as the distance between him and the Devil grew shorter. Issei made a fist and threw a punch at the priest, hitting Freed in the face, causing him to fly away from Issei. Freed bounced off the ground as he was airborne and landed right in front of the altar that led downstairs.

"That's for what you did to Asia." Issei said as he felt proud of knocking out the insane human. Sean heard what Issei said and his mind ran at the thought of what the priest could do to someone like Asia.

"Wait, what did he do to Asia?" Sean asked him. Issei got angry at what happened to the nun.

"That bastard tried to rape her for trying to save me after she found out I was a Devil." Issei told the human. Sean's eyes were wide with shock as he heard the despicable actions of the priest.

"He did what?" Sean asked again in disbelief.

"That's right!" Freed shouted as he got off the ground, pulling out a second sword after losing the one he had in his hand while he still had his gun in the other. "She would've enjoyed too, if you didn't get in the way!"

Sean's rage soon came to a tipping point. This man, no, this monster was irredeemable and had no business being, in any way, part of the church.

"What's wrong? You angry like your Devil friend was? And what are you gonna do about it? You haven't even made a move! You more of a watcher than a player?" Freed mocked Sean as he laughed at the thought of the inactive human. "Then how about I help you out with that?!" he proposed as he held his gun toward the other human. But what Freed didn't notice was that the Power Stone was reacting to Sean's emotions.

Freed smiled as he finally pulled the trigger. The bullet from his gun shot through the air and hit its mark: right between Sean's eyes, causing his glasses to be broken in half and fall to the floor.

"HARRIS!" Issei screamed as he saw his human friend get shot in the head. The other Devils were silent as they watched Sean in shock and confusion. After seeing all the things he could do back at the ORC, he didn't even move.

"Hahahaha! So much for your human pet, huh you shitty Devils?!" Freed asked the Devils, reveling in the fact that he just killed a corrupted sinner.

"You bastard!" Issei shouted as he was about to fight the priest again to avenge his friend while the Devils were about to do the same.

"Ow."

Everyone in the room stopped what they were doing as they heard a voice. They all turned to see Sean, still standing with his head leaning back from the force of the bullet hitting him. He lowered his head to reveal that the bullet did hit him, but it was compressed into a flat metal disk against his forehead.

The Devils were both surprised and relieved that Sean was OK. The human simply used plucked the bullet with the fingers from his right hand and dropped it on the ground. Seeing this, Freed was shocked and enraged that the human survived a shot that would've killed a normal human.

"What the hell?! I thought you said you were human! That shot should've killed you!" Freed roared as he kept firing his gun at the human. However, just like Issei after promoting to a Rook, the bullets seemed to have no effect on him.

Sean didn't say a word as he was too angry to even form the words to express it, so he decided to use his actions. He walked slowly toward the object of his rage as the priest kept shooting in hopes of wearing his target down. After seeing his attempts fail, Freed was starting to become scared. When Issei shrugged off his bullets, it was because of his Promotion as a Devil. But Sean was an unknown to him. Freed hid his fear with a unhinged smile as he had an idea on how to hurt the supposed human.

"Let's see you walk away from this!" he bellowed as he aimed for a new spot on the human and pulled the trigger. The target Freed had in mind caused Sean to stopped as he was only a few feet away. The bullet hit its mark, but like before, Sean wasn't fazed. Rather, he stopped to checked to see if he was sure of where Freed shot him.

Sean looked at Freed, his anger now mixed with annoyance. The human looked back at the priest and the fear inside him grew as Freed saw Sean's eyes. They were just like when he threatened Mittelt, completely black with glowing purple irises.

"Did you seriously just try to shoot me in the dick?" the human asked with a disturbingly even tone in his voice. The Devils each got a chill down their spines as they heard Sean speak. Freed only got angrier as his last ditch effort to put the American down failed.

The priest fired his gun again, only hear the clicking sound of an empty clip. Freed tried to reload it, but Sean brought his hand out with the Mind Stone glowing on the Infinity Gauntlet. The madman's gun flew out of his hand and into Sean's bare hand. Freed may have lost his gun, but he wouldn't go down without a fight. He pulled out another light sword from his robe, now dual-wielding his weapons.

"So you got a few tricks! Big deal! If I can't shoot you, then I'll just chop you up into mincemeat!" Freed screamed at the human as he charged at his opponent. The priest raised his weapons, about to slash at his target. The Power Stone shined again, replacing the Mind Stone. Freed brought down his swords and they shattered when they made contact with Sean's body.

Shock showed on everyone's faces once again. The Devils couldn't believe that the human before them couldn't be harmed by the priest's weapons. But Freed was the most affected by this turn of events. Now unarmed, he tried to escape and live to fight another day. However, Sean wouldn't let him.

The human in question grabbed Freed by his neck and lifted him in the air. The deranged priest tried to make Sean remove his hand from his throat, but the hand felt like it was welded to it.

"Freed Sellzen..." Sean said in the same even tone. Everyone froze as he spoke. The human recalled his encounter with Mittelt again as Freed found himself in the same position she was in. Only now, Sean wasn't on the edge of his anger. He was pushed over it.

**"your death will not be a gentle one." **Sean finished his sentence as he started to slowly tighten his hand. Freed started struggling to breathe as he started kicking and punching the human, but the American didn't even feel them. It was as if he was invincible.

**"I'm going to break your neck slowly. So you can feel every crack, every fracture of the bones. Then and only then, will I allow you to die." **Sean told the insane priest as the pressure on his neck steadily increased. Just like Sean told him, the pain in his neck was escalating as the damage started to pile up.

The Devils knew that they should capitalize on Freed's defenseless state, but the aura coming from Sean was staggering. They never realized that the human could be so fearsome. Issei, Kiba, and Koneko froze in awe and a bit of fear as they stood right where they were and watched Sean strangle the deranged priest.

"AAAAAHHH!" Freed screamed in agony as the pain was becoming unbearable. He was certain that his neck was fractured as Sean promised he would do. Realizing that he couldn't remove the hand from his neck, he started digging around his pockets. Feeling the object he needed, he threw a flash bomb in the American's face and its blinding light shined right in his eyes.

"AH! DAMMIT!" Sean yelled as his light-sensitive eyes seared in pain. He let go of Freed's neck and covered his eyes. Freed started gasping, trying to fill his lungs with much needed air. The Devils snapped back into the fight, trying to kill Freed. Despite his neck injury, he managed to put some distance between himself and them.

"No way that I'm gonna die for some Fallen asshole! And I'm sure as hell not going to let some Devils and their human pet get the best of Freed Sellzen! You haven't seen the last of me!" Freed declared to the Devils while holding his neck to try and ease the pain as he pulled out a second flash bomb and threw on the ground, blinding the Devils and allowing him to escape.

"Damn, he got away!" Issei said.

"Forget about him. We're here to save Asia, remember?" Kiba reminded the Pawn the reason why they were at the church. Issei said nothing as he turned to his human friend.

"Sean, are you alright?" the Devil asked his friend. Sean was rubbing his eyes, trying to alleviate the pain of being blinded.

"I'm fine. Just give me a second." he told Issei as the green Time Stone started to shine. Sean felt the pain in his eyes leave them and brought his hand down. He opened his eyes and they were back to the normal coloring of white and blue.

He felt something poking his arm and turned to see Koneko carrying the broken pieces of his glasses.

"Thanks, Koneko." he gratefully told her, taking the pieces into his hand.

"No problem." the white-haired Rook replied simply. She made her way toward the altar and kicked it open like she did with the doors.

"Hey Harris. You sure you can fight without your glasses?" Kiba asked the human.

"I won't have to." Sean told the Knight. He took his broken pair of glasses and the Time Stone glowed again. The pieces of eyewear started to move on their own into their original positions, causing the glasses to fully repair themselves.

"Whoa, that's awesome!" Issei commented.

"Yeah. The Time Stone allows me to reverse the time of anything I want, letting me repair any broken items or using it on my own body to reverse any damage that I take in a fight. That's how I recovered from that flash." Sean explained.

"Speaking of, how are you able to see in the dark? Humans can adjust their eyes to darkness, but to Devils, we can see in the dark clear as day." Kiba asked Sean.

"That's because of the Mind Stone. I can change anything I want that relates to the mind or the actual brain with it. So I amplified my sensitivity to light in my eyes, giving me night vision."

"You never mentioned anything like that when you showed us your Infinity Gauntlet." Issei countered.

"Well, I didn't know what you guys would do with that information. Plus, I got to have some secrets to myself, right?" Sean reasoned as the group started going down the stairs leading to Asia's location. However, Sean stopped right before he set a single foot on the stairs.

"Oh God!" Sean yelled out suddenly, making the Devils jump in surprise.

"What? What is it?" Issei asked as he prepared himself for another fight.

"I just realized I'm touching that freak's gun with my bare hands!" the human clarified as he then held the gun with two fingers, the weapon dangling from the tips.

The Devils sweatdropped as Sean was having a mini freak-out over touching Freed's gun. Though they could understand why he was upset. With everything that Freed said and did, they really didn't want to touch anything the priest touched.

"Ew, ew! Gross, gross, gross!" Sean whined as he made a small portal with the Space Stone and dropped the firearm through it. The American started shaking his hands in disgust and used the red Reality Stone to create a small bottle of hand sanitizer. He then squeezed out a generous amount and started vigorously rubbing the cleansing liquid.

_"Why does it feel like it's not enough?!"_ Sean screamed in his head, still feeling the disgusting sensation from holding Freed's gun that he licked before fighting them.

The group finally reached the bottom of the stairs and rushed through the door with Issei leading the charge. Inside was a bunch of masked exorcists standing between the four and Dohnaseek, who was standing next to Asia. The nun was strapped to a giant glowing cross by large chains, positioned like the crucifixion of Jesus.

"Well, look who's here." Dohnaseek said as he noticed the Devils and human enter the room.

"You son of a bitch! Let Asia go right now!" Issei demanded then ran toward the cross despite the wall of exorcists that blocked his path. The holy men brandished their light swords to prevent the Devil from his objective, but it was unneeded as Dohnaseek threw a blue light spear right at Issei.

"Look out!" Sean called out to Issei. The human grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him away as the spear missed him by a few inches. "I get that you want to save her, but it won't matter if you get killed before you do."

"Isn't this touching?" Dohnaseek sarcastically commented. "But unfortunately for you, it's too little, too late."

"AAAAAAAAAHHHH!" Asia let out a piercing scream as her chest began to give off a bright glow.

_"Too late? What's that supposed to mean?"_ Sean asked the gods, wondering about the wording of the Fallen Angel's boasting.

_**"She's dying."**_ Yama simply informed his host, shocking him.

_"Dying?! What is he doing to her?!" _Sean repeated with growing anger.

_**"He's removing her Twilight Healing to take for himself. After the extraction is complete, the former host loses their life."**_ Thoth told him in a sorrowful tone.

_"Isn't there something we can do to save her? Anything?!"_ the human desperately pleaded to the deities.

_**"I'm sorry, Sean. But once a Sacred Gear is removed by this method, it causes irreparable damage to the previous host's soul. Even if the Gear is given back, she won't recover."**_ Yama explained in a similarly desolate tone.

Sean's eyes went wide as he heard the Hindi god say this. Asia was going to die for something that she only used to help people. And all because of some selfish bastard wanting it?!

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!" Asia released one final shriek as the glow on her chest amplified before dying down. The light in the nun's eyes dimmed as her Twilight Healing floated in the air, bathed in its own light.

"Finally! The Twilight Healing is all mine!" Dohnaseek declared as the Sacred Gear dropped gently into his cupped hands. He then pushed the rings into his chest and the glow from the Gear encompassed his body. The light then receded until it only showed on his hand, the rings on both of his hands.

"No! ASIA!" Issei called out the nun as her head dropped like a puppet with its string cut. The Devil rushed in again, but now the exorcists charged at him in return. Kiba and Koneko went to take some of the heat off of their friend. They eventually caused the horde of excommunicated priests to divide like Moses and the Red Sea.

Issei continued running to Asia's aid. When he reached the apex of the stairs, he slowed to a stunned walk. Dohnaseek did nothing as the Devil approached the doomed nun. The Fallen Angel just smiled as he enjoyed watching the disturbed look on Issei's face.

"If you really want the girl that badly, then by all means, take her. I'm done with her, anyway." Dohnaseek offhandedly said as he snapped his fingers, causing the chain to unlatch Asia and fall into Issei's arms.

"Asia! Are you OK?" the Devil softly asked the girl. Asia weakly turned to face Issei with a smile.

"Issei! You really came!" Asia said softly, grateful that her Devil friend came to her rescue.

"Don't worry, I'm going to get you out of here!" Issei assured her.

"You should consider your own situation before worrying about someone else's." Dohnaseek suggested to the Devil as he created another azure light spear.

"You bastard! How could you do this to her?!" Issei yelled at the Fallen Angel.

"What does it matter to me if a human gets snuffed out? If anything, she should be honored that she made such a generous contribution to us." Dohnaseek glibly asked Issei.

Sean overheard the Fallen Angel's casual disregard for Asia's life and his rage was once again reaching its breaking point. He clenched his Gauntlet-clad fist as the Power Stone once again shined its purple light.

"How about I kill you too? That way, you can be with your little nun friend again!" Dohnaseek advocated as he made another blue light spear, preparing to finish off the Devil and the nun that he held.

"Die, you heathen!" a stray exorcist screamed at Sean as he ran toward the Devils' ally and tried to slice him down. The human looked at him, then to Dohnaseek and got an idea.

The Power Stone stopped glowing and then the Space Stone radiated its light after it. Sean focused as he willed the Gauntlet to his thoughts. And suddenly, Issei and Asia were right at the spot where the exorcist previously was. The exorcist, meanwhile, ended up in Issei's earlier predicament. He was confused at having lost his target, but it didn't really matter. The sudden switch didn't stop Dohnaseek from continuing his attack. The jab of his arm still went through, only the Fallen Angel killed one of his own henchman instead of his intended Devil target.

Issei looked up to see Sean standing next to him. He looked behind himself and saw that he was far away from the cross where he was just a second ago.

"Thanks, Harris." Issei said to the human while letting out a sigh of relief.

"Don't thank me! Just get Asia out of here!" Sean told him. Issei nodded and carried Asia as he ran out the door they came in from.

Dohnaseek was annoyed by not being able to kill Issei like he wanted. The Fallen Angel saw the Devil just blink out of the spot he was on and one of the stray exorcists took his place, acting as if he was about to strike down his Fallen master. Dohnaseek didn't even bother to stop himself as he didn't care what happen to any of his underlings. If they got in his way, then they deserved to die.

Dohnaseek just pulled the light spear out of the corpse of the exorcist that he killed and started eyeing Sean. He was the only one who hadn't made any particular impact of this debacle, yet Dohnaseek could sense immense power from the human.

_"That human must be strong if he has such power. Perhaps I should take what he has too."_ Dohnaseek thought as he unfurled his black, feathered wings. The Fallen Angel flew straight toward Sean with high speed. He flew right over Kiba as the Knight held back a stray exorcist. He tried to intercept Dohnaseek, but a few more exorcists blocked the Devil's path.

_**"Sean, that Fallen Angel is flying right at you." **_Morrigan warned her host. Sean saw this from the corner of his eye and the Power Stone started to illuminate again. Dohnaseek thrusted his light spear at him as he was right on top of his human target, but Sean simply took a step back causing the spear to harmlessly pass through the air in front of him. He retaliated by clenching his left hand and swung it at the Fallen Angel's face, giving him a hard strike with the back of his fist.

The force of that single hit was enough to send Dohnaseek flying in the opposite direction and crashing into the cross that once held up Asia. The cross broke as the Fallen Angel's body made contact with the restraining apparatus, but the Fallen man still kept on his airborne path until he crashed into the wall behind it.

The other occupants in the room ceased the fight as they saw the display of pure strength that just occurred. The Devils were impacted slightly less than the exorcists, but they were amazed nonetheless. After all, lifting a couch with two people on it was nothing compared to repelling a former holy entity.

"Did you see that?!"

"A human just swatted Lord Dohnaseek away like a fly!"

"The Devils found someone with this level of power?!"

The exorcists were now having second thoughts about fighting the Devils after witnessing their leader being dispatched so easily. But a rumbling from the other side of the room soon calmed them as they saw Dohnaseek still alive, though not unscathed.

The Fallen Angel lost his fedora that showed his bleeding head. His wings drooped from his back as they seemingly took the brunt of the impact. One of his arms hanged limp, showing that it was broken. His knees were shaking as he struggled to stand up from the rubble he emerged from. He tried to mask the pain he was feeling, but still gritted his teeth and held his broken arm with his barely injured one.

Dohnaseek couldn't believe what had just happened! A human just smacked him away like he was nothing. His shock turned into anger with a hint of joy, knowing that once he took Sean's Sacred Gear, he would be unstoppable.

"I gotta hand it to you, human. That is some power you've got in you. But that doesn't really matter." Dohanseek complimented Sean as he held his working arm up to his useless one. The glow that usually came from the Gear shined around the Fallen Angel's arm and in a matter of seconds, he was able to move it again like normal. The glow soon spread throughout his entire body and all the injuries he sustained also vanished as if they never happened.

"Twilight Healing. It's not really my style, but at least it's useful." Dohnaseek said about his recently acquired Sacred Gear. Sean glared at the Fallen Angel as he uses the stolen Gear. The Fallen Angel looked back at the human and stared at the golden, jewel-encrusted glove.

"Now, that one. That one's more my kind of Gear." he commented. Sean was appalled of the idea of losing the Infinity Gauntlet and infuriated that this motherfucker even thought about taking it.

"So, you want to take this from me now?" Sean asked rhetorically while holding up the arm that wore the Infinity Gauntlet. Dohnaseek just eyed it, moving his eyes along so he was looking directly at it. Like a starving dog staring at a piece of food held up by its master.

"Or you can just give it to me and save us all the trouble." Dohnaseek alluded with a cocky smirk that only angered Sean even more. His eyes started to flicker back to their secondary color setting of black sclera with shimmering purple irises as his anger started to get to him again. But Sean remembered the breathing techniques Yama taught him and soon began to calm down.

"I like to see you try." Sean challenged the Fallen Angel while the Time Stone shined. Dohnaseek felt insulted that this human thought he could beat him.

"You think you can beat me? Don't think that just because you have power that you can beat me!" he told the human condescendingly as he raised his wings, preparing to fly towards Sean again. Only to see that he disappeared. The Fallen Angel looked around the room, trying to find his prey.

"Looking for me?" a voice said from behind him. Dohnaseek's eyes went wide as he didn't sense him before the human announced his presence to him. Dohnaseek summoned another light spear and spun around to stab Sean. But the human beat to the punch with an actual punch right into his gut with the Infinity Gauntlet while the Power Stone lit up.

The force from the attack caused Dohnaseek's body to bend around Sean's fist and was once again blown away. This time, at an angle towards the ceiling and he didn't stop there. Dohnaseek smashed through the ceiling and went straight through it with a loud crash. The pieces that broke off from the collision fell down to the basement floor.

Once again, the Devils and the exorcists stopped fighting to see the Fallen Angel fly through the solid concrete that made the base of the upstairs church. Sean looked over the group and saw Kiba and Koneko had made it near the door leading upstairs.

"Kiba, Koneko! We're done here!" Sean called out to the Devils. They stood over at the door while Sean walked down the stairs and through the divide of stray exorcists. The human didn't show an ounce of anxiety or fear as he strolled right to the door. When he reached the other side, he turned over to the crowd of exorcists.

"All of you, listen up because I'm just going to say this once!" Sean raised his voice so the entire group could hear him.

"I don't know if you guys were manipulated into doing this or if you willingly went along with it. But as of now, I don't really care anymore. So I'm going to give you all one chance to leave this town." Sean offered them an ultimatum. The strays looked at each other as they contemplated their options. However, one of them was stubborn enough to disregard Sean's warning.

"You're just one person! There's more of us than you! Keep your offer and die for your sins!" the exorcist exclaimed as he charged at Sean. Sean just rolled his eyes and held up the Gauntlet with the Reality Stone gleamed. Kiba and Koneko were confused as the human stood his ground without any hint of defending himself. But Sean wasn't planning on defending himself.

The exorcist kept running, but was impeded as his foot got stuck... to the floor. As soon as it was, he slid into the floor until the only thing left was the hand that held his light sword. Everyone except Sean kept watching the hand as it started twitching, the body it was attached to struggling to find any semblance of air until it weaken and finally stoppped moving and dropped its weapon on the floor.

The other exorcists were shocked that the human easily dispatched their mulish comrade. His logic did seem sound, but it was quickly overridden with outright terror. They looked to Sean as he held an indifferent expression on his face.

"Anyone else?" he asked emotionlessly. The tone that Sean used only heightened their dread. Some of them took a few steps back, even though that the human stood in front of their only way out.

"Are you going to try what your friend did?" Sean raised his question a second time. The exorcists dropped their weapons in surrender and backed away from them. Sean smiled at their action.

"Good. Now get out of this town and I better not see any of you around here again. And don't think that I don't know what you look like because of those masks. Because if I ever find any of you around here again, well... it will make what I did to him look like a mercy." Sean told them while he pointed to the now dead, submerged exorcist.

The human waved his hand with the Space Stone and made a portal to the outskirts of Kuoh Town for the exorcists to leave. They all rushed to the portal like bats straight out of hell, desperately trying to get as far away from the overpowered human as possible. One of them even tripped over another just to get out of the room.

Sean turned toward the stairs and began his ascent into the church. Kiba and Koneko looked to each other, wondering what had just happened. With just a few punches and a wave of his hand, the human that denied Rias' invitation to join her peerage easily outmatched not just the exorcists but perhaps themselves as well. The Devils started to follow Sean up the stairs.

"We should've just killed them. Made sure that they didn't do this again." Kiba mentioned as he and Koneko followed Sean up the stairs.

"Well, I would've tried figuring out who did and didn't want to do this. But that would take too long. Besides, with what they just saw, even if they try again, they won't get another free pass." Sean said. The human believed in second chances. However, change only happens if that person wants to change. If they're too stubborn to do so, then they weren't worth giving another chance.

_**"That was quite the show you put on!"**_ Morrigan told her host.

_"Well, sometimes you have to strike fear right into the hearts of your enemies to end a fight. Pretty sure you taught me that, Morrigan."_ Sean replied, remembering the lessons he received about confrontation.

_**"And you did such a wonderful job! I'm so proud of you!" **_she continued her praise of her host's efficancy of dealing with the priests.

_"I only wish we got here sooner. We could've saved Asia."_ Sean thought somberly.

_**"There's no point thinking in hindsight. All you can do is move forward."**_ Chronos said, although Sean wasn't mollified. He only became more dejected of his failure. But he had a thought cross his mind as he realized who he was talking to.

_"Chronos, can't I just go back in time and save her?"_ Sean put forth.

_**"Absolutely not! I told you that time is not something to be meddled with!"**_ the time god emphatically denied his host idea. The human stopped climbing the stairs from the sudden refusal. The Knight and Rook stopped as well, wondering about what caused him to do so.

Chronos sighed as he felt the sadness from his host. _**"Even if you did go back, you were too directly involved with her rescue. If your past and present selves ever interacted, it would create a temporal paradox that would destroy all of existence. I'm sorry, but it's simply a matter of one life versus all of life. There's no questioning it."**_

"Harris, are you alright?" Kiba asked him. Sean looked over to see Kiba's confused face and Koneko's neutral look, although there was worry behind it.

"Yeah. It's just the whole situation is hitting me now. We failed." Sean replied sadly. The Devils shared his grave expression. They could only imagine how Issei was reacting.

"You bastard! I'll never forgive for what you've done!"

Speaking of the perverted Devil, the trio heard him screaming in rage as they approached the top of the steps. They peered above the hole in the floor to see Issei with tears in his eyes standing by Asia, her life snuffed out well before the group got there. Dohnaseek was standing opposite of the Devil, his injuries once again healed after Sean's simple yet overwhelming attack.

"Give her back!" the rage kept building up inside of Issei seeing Asia's murderer alive while the innocent nun was dead for a ludicrous reason. Sean and the Devils could feel his power skyrocketing along with his emotional state.

"I WANT ASIA BACK!" Issei roared as he finally snapped, causing his Sacred Gear to appear.

**[Dragon Boost!]**

A voice announced. It sounded like it came from Issei, but the voice that said it was different from his own.

Dohnaseek was annoyed from the persistence that Issei showed. Raynare had told him that the Devil's Sacred Gear was only a Twice Critical. She didn't even have to put forth any effort to retrieve the nun from him. Issei yelled out in fury as he tried to punch the Fallen Angel, but Dohanseek just jumped over him with his wings spread. Issei turned around to make a second attempt, but he was halted by two blue light spears piercing his legs. Blood sprayed out of the wounds while the light from the spears were burning him like acid.

"So how does that feel? Light is toxic to your kind. I've heard it's supposed to be the worst kind of pain imaginable. Is it true?" Dohnaseek mockingly asked Issei, relishing in the suffering of the Devil.

"Who gives a shit about that?! Compared to what Asia went through, this is nothing!" Issei retorted as he grabbed the spears in his legs and ripped them out, causing more of his blood to gush out. The Devils winced at Issei's show of endurance while Sean admired the sheer will it must've taken to ignore the pain that he caused himself. He also noticed that the gem on Issei's Sacred Gear had flashed a light while his power seemed to have doubled a second time.

"I have to admit. For a Low-Class Devil like you, you're quite the tenacious one. Though, tenacity will only get you so far. I suppose I should congratulate you for lasting as long as you have." Dohnaseek continued to mock Issei as he fell on his ass, losing feeling in his legs, the poison from the light spears working through them.

Sean saw that Issei's eyes had widened, like he just realized something. The Devil began saying something, but it was too soft to hear. Dohnaseek got confused at Issei's murmurs.

"What are you mumbling about? Has the pain made you lose your mind?" the Fallen Angel kept his condescending tone.

"Please... just this once... LET ME DESTROY THIS FUCKER!" Issei bellowed as he stood on his injured legs and his wings sprouted out of his back.

Dohnaseek was shocked to see the Devil standing even though the light should've made his legs useless. "How the hell are you standing after that?! You're nothing but a Low-Class Devil!"

"Oh, don't get me wrong. It hurts just trying to keep my balance. In fact, I feel like passing out right now." Issei told the Fallen Angel as he shuffled himself closer to Dohnaseek while the Fallen Angel matched his approach with backpedaling.

"But I'll put up with it if it means taking you down!" Issei screamed as he held out his Gear.

**[Explosion!]** The voice from earlier announced as Issei's Sacred Gear started to change. It suddenly grew claws at his fingers and two golden spikes appeared on the back of the gauntlet. It had the look of dragon.

_**"He's finally awakened it."**_ Morrigan suddenly said.

_"So that's Boosted Gear?"_ Sean asked her.

_**"Yes. His emotions brought out its power. Though, he's still not powerful enough to contact Ddraig. As for the Fallen Angel, he's about to seriously regret pissing that boy off."**_

The light from the Boosted Gear shined bright like a beacon as Issei raised his arm. Dohnaseek started to lose his confidence as he felt the Devil's true power.

"This amount of power from a Twice Critical? That's impossible!" Dohnaseek yelled out in disbelief.

Issei's sights were set on Dohnaseek as the Fallen Angel dismissed his apprehension. Dohnaseek made another light spear to throw at the Devil, only for Issei to destroy it with a swipe of his hand. Dohnaseek didn't give up on his assault as he kept throwing more light spears. However, Issei didn't stop slapping them into nothing either. Issei finally reached close enough to punch Dohnaseek, but the Fallen Angel was one step ahead as he flew up into the air and landed on the other side of the room.

"I don't know how you've got so much power, but I'm not sticking around to find out. I already got what I came for." Dohnaseek told Issei as he was about to disappear.

"What's the rush?"

Dohnaseek was shocked at hearing the human's voice once again coming from right behind him. Sean didn't wait for him to turn around as he pushed him forward with the Infinity Gauntlet. Though, no one else noticed that the Soul Stone was glowing now. The push itself only made Dohnaseek stumble as he tried to regain his balance. Sean himself slipped his left hand into his pocket.

The Mind Stone shined now and Sean focused his thoughts into Issei's mind.

_"Issei, don't freak out. I want you to try charging at Dohnaseek and don't stop for anything. Just trust me." _Sean told him.

Issei was a little stunned about his American friend talking inside his head, but he nodded and followed his friend's instructions. Dohanseek felt the Devil approaching him and turned to attack him. Sean, on the other hand, didn't try to stop him. He just willed the Space Stone to activate and used it to switch places with the Devil. Now, Sean was in front of him while Issei still rushed the Fallen Angel and got close enough to deliver the finishing blow. Dohnaseek tried to turn back around, but he was too late.

"THIS ONE'S FOR ASIA!" Issei shouted as his punch connected with Dohnaseek's face, sending him sailing across the air and breaking through the stained glass above the front door.

Sean just followed the Fallen Angel with his eyes as he crashed through the window.

"Nice aim." Sean complimented the Devil.

"Man, that felt good." Issei said as his wings retracted. He was about to drop from the pain still present in his legs. Luckily, Kiba caught him before he hit the ground.

"Look at you, handling that on your own." Kiba told him while he carried Issei on his shoulder.

"Thanks for that. What held you up?" Issei asked the Knight.

"Yeah. I figured that you would actually help instead of sitting back to watch the show." Sean also wondered about Kiba's inaction.

"I was ordered not to interfere by Rias." Kiba explained himself.

"That's right."

The guys all turned to see Rias leaning against the base of the broken stone cross with her arms crossed under her bust and a smile on her face, proud of her Pawn's victory over Dohnaseek. She was silent for a few seconds as she looked at Sean with a confused and surprised expression. The Devil shook her head lightly and spoke again.

"I told Kiba and Koneko not to interfere because I believed that you would win. Though, I wished that Harris would have thought the same." Rias explained.

"I was just making sure that he didn't get away. I let Hyoudou take him down." Sean said to the redheaded Devil.

"So you did." Rias replied, agreeing with the human. "In any case, I was planning on helping out with the stray exorcists, but when I got there, they were all gone. Though, I did see a hand poking out of the ground."

"Yeah, I let the exorcists go. But one of them was an idiot, thinking that just because they had the numbers advantage, they would win. Numbers might help, but they don't win a fight. Anyway, he tried to kill me. So I made him phase through the ground. After that, the others weren't so quick to fight us." Sean recounted the exorcists' leave.

Rias sighed at the explanation. But there was nothing she could do about it now. The front doors opened to show Koneko dragging Dohnaseek inside by one of his wings.

"Did someone order this?" the Rook rhetorically asked in her usual uninflected tone. She then tossed the Fallen Angel toward her master as he landed on his face.

"Well, well. We meet again... Dohnaseek, was it?" Rias asked him. Dohnaseek looked up to see Rias standing over him.

"Lady Gremory." The Fallen Angel simply replied.

"While I would enjoy having another nice chat with you..." Rias began as she held out her clenched hand and released three black feathers.

"...it's about time for you to join your little entourage that I disposed of earlier."

The pinions gently floating down to the ground as Dohnaseek looked with indifference. As if he didn't care that three of his own died at the hands of the Devil.

Sean saw the Fallen Angel's expression. What he read from Kalawarner's mind was right. This asshole didn't give a shit about anything but himself.

"You killed them?" Issei asked.

"Rias may not be quick to anger, but when she's pushed, she lives up to her title of 'The Princess of Destruction'." Kiba told Issei in Rias' stead.

"Wow, that's hardcore!" Issei said, impressed by his master's title.

"Why would you even get involved with this?" Dohnaseek asked Rias.

"Well, I would have stayed out of it. But you just had to keep targeting my peerage." Rias explained.

"So you were just looking out for me?" Issei asked.

"Yep!" Akeno told Issei as she walked inside the doors and stood there, as if waiting for something. "You should've seen her when those Fallen Angels were making fun of you, Issei. I haven't seen her that mad in a long time. Ufufufu~" she told the Pawn with a giggle. Rias herself looked over to Issei and noticed his Sacred Gear had changed.

"Look at that! Seems like your Sacred Gear's evolved!" Rias said.

"Yeah, it just freaked out and turned red." Issei told her while he held up his arm that had the Sacred Gear.

"It's called Boosted Gear. It's a Sacred Gear that doubles the user's power every ten seconds. He can even become powerful enough to transcend God and Satan at will. It's actually one of the thirteen Longinus-Class." Rias ran through the details of Issei's newly transformed Sacred Gear.

Dohnaseek was unnerved by this revelation. He couldn't believe that a child like Issei could possess something that powerful. He looked over to Sean as he remembered the human's Sacred Gear and how easily he dispatched him while in the basement of the church.

"So it seems like the only reason Issei beat you was because that you didn't take him seriously. But we're getting off topic. It's time for you to disappear." she told the Fallen Angel as she raised her hand and red and black energy started dancing around it.

"Wait!"

The energy on Rias' hand vanished at the sound of Sean's voice. The human walked up to her and Dohnaseek. The Fallen Angel let out a small sigh of relief that he didn't know he had while Rias was looking at Sean incredulously.

"Don't tell me that you're actually thinking about letting him go too?" Rias asked, wondering if the human was out of his mind.

"Oh no, you can kill him." Sean said. The fear building back up inside Dohnaseek as he now knew that his death was only being delayed. "There's just something that I don't understand."

Rias raised an eyebrow, perturbed while Dohnaseek looked at Sean in confusion. The human knelt down to meet the Fallen Angel at eye level.

"It was something that you said earlier. You said that Twilight Healing wasn't your kind of Sacred Gear to have, but you mentioned that you would rather have my Infinity Gauntlet instead." Sean summarized his confusion to the others.

"So, what's your point?" Rias asked, lost at Sean's pondering.

"My point is that he must be getting Twilight Healing for someone else. If he was acting on his own, he would've just tried to take my Sacred Gear, instead of Asia's." Sean finished. Rias realized the logic in Sean's reasoning. Dohnaseek, on the other hand, widened his eyes in shock.

"See that? It looks like he _is_ working for someone else. Why else would he be as surprised as he is?" Sean pointed out Dohnaseek's expression.

Dohnaseek's dumbfounded look turned into one of defiance. "I won't talk!" he shouted at the pair standing before him.

"Hahaha." Sean let out a small chuckle. "Oh, you don't have to tell me." Sean stood on his feet and raised the Infinity Gauntlet with his hand open in front of Dohnaseek's face. The Fallen Angel backed away from the hand, but Sean then grabbed him by his face while the Mind Stone started to shine.

"I'll just take it."

With that statement, Dohnaseek's eyes, starting from his pupils, soon turned completely pitch black. Sean closed his own eyes and focused on his task.

**XXXXX**

_Sean could see flashes of memories pass by his vision as he tried to concentrate on finding anything that involves Twilight Healing._

_He found the most recent memory of taking the Sacred Gear away from Asia._

_Keeping her prisoner after Raynare retrieved her from town._

_The nun's arrival to the church._

_But nothing that would indicate anything about a higher power looking over this operation._

_The strain of searching through countless memories was starting to affect Sean. He had never had to delve this deep into someone's mind before. Especially with all the information that was inside Dohnaseek's head._

_He was about to stop when he found a memory that seemed close enough to what he was searching for._

_Dohnaseek was talking to someone. Sean couldn't see their face as their back was turned. Dohnaseek himself was kneeling before the person in question, like he was addressing a king._

_"My lord. I have received news of a Sacred Gear that would benefit your cause. Azazel has discovered the holder of Twilight Healing. It is a nun that has been excommunicated for healing a Devil. He also plans on retreiving her in order to study it. Perhaps this could aid in your plans." Dohnaseek reported his finding to the figure. It was silent for a few seconds as the person in front of Dohnaseek contemplated on this recent information._

_"I see. Azazel always was a fool. Stopping the war just so he would play around with the Sacred Gears. Dohnaseek, I want you to volunteer for this assignment. Remove the nun's Sacred Gear and bring it to me. If you succeed, I'll see that you are rewarded." the person gave his order to the kneeling Fallen Angel._

_"I will do as you ask. Although..."_

_"What is it, Dohnaseek?"_

_"There are already three volunteers: Raynare, Kalawarner and Mittelt. I was wondering if I may have them." he requested._

_"Very well. They will be yours, if you accomplish your mission." the figure agreed. Dohnaseek bowed his head in reverence._

_"Thank you, my lord." Dohnaseek stood and left the figure alone._

**XXXXX**

Sean let go of Dohnaseek's face and grabbed his head, throbbing from the mind-reading. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. This bastard was not only going against Azazel like Kalawarner thought they were doing, but he was also going to keep them. And if what Kalawarner thought about him was true, it wouldn't end well for the three of them.

"So, you _are_ working for someone. Only it's not Azazel." Sean said to Dohnaseek. The Fallen Angel and the Devils besides Issei were stupefied by this disclosure.

"Those three Fallen Angels you killed were misled by this guy. Their real objective was to just bring Asia back so Azazel can study Twilight Healing." Sean told the Devils.

"And after everything was said and done, he was going to keep them as pets, weren't you?" the human said while looking at Dohnaseek with contempt.

"So what if I did? Raynare was always such a slut for Azazel. She even fell because of her adoration for that spineless excuse of a Fallen Angel. She'd be a better slut when I got my hands on her. The other two were just bonuses." Dohnaseek apprised the entire group without a hint of shame.

The Devils were disgusted by this bastard's intentions toward his female compatriots. This guy was no better than Freed. No one was more furious than Sean. The Fallen Angel that was before him was the exact kind of person he despised. Arrogant, perverted, and a complete asshole.

The Power Stone glowed on its place on the Infinity Gauntlet while his hand was clenched. If it was just his bare hand, his nails would be digging into his palm and it would draw blood. Sean marched right up to Dohnaseek, grabbed him by his jaw with his normal hand, and made him look into his own black and purple eyes.

Dohnaseek himself was becoming increasingly terrified just by looking at Sean. He couldn't believe that a human could invoke such fear in him. He didn't want to look into the malicious eyes of the imposing American, so he closed his eyes, waiting for the finishing blow.

**"Look at me."** Sean ordered the Fallen Angel. The Devils got a chill up their spines from hearing the sinister voice coming from Sean. Dohnaseek got the full force of it and was only frightened him more. He tightened his eyelids as the fear only kept growing inside him.

**"I SAID 'LOOK AT ME!'"** Sean howled in anger. Dohnaseek's eye flew open and saw the human's unnatrual eyes again. The horror was abated, but was still present. He didn't dare to disobey such a frightening presence.

After Mittelt returned from her failure of killing Sean, she said that he had such a intimidating air when he was infuriated. She told her fellow Fallen Angels that it was like she angered God. He couldn't believe such a thing was possible. But now, here he was. Staring into the eyes of the very human that scared Mittelt to her core and what was worse, she wasn't exaggerating.

**"Do you know why I want you to look me in the eye?"** Sean asked Dohnaseek, focusing back to the human's voice. Sean's grip was tight on his jaw that he couldn't speak. So he just shook his head as best as he could. Sean raised the Fallen Angel to stand on his feet. He pulled his left arm back and thrusted it right at Dohnaseek's chest.

"AAAAAHHHHHH!" The Fallen Angel screamed as the human's arm went straight through its target and emerged out of his back, though the hand was clenched. Upon closer inspection, the Devils could see something in Sean's hand and it was pulsing.

Sean took his arm out of Dohnaseek's chest and showed him that he had his still beating heart in the palm of his golden hand. The Fallen Angel gasped like a fish out of water in both pain and shock of seeing his own heart out of its place from his body. His eyes turned toward the human that ripped out his blood-pumping organ.

**"It's because that I want to see the hope and life leave from the eyes of people like you as you die."**

With that, Sean threw the dying Fallen Angel away from him. As soon as Dohnaseek hit the ground, his body exploded into a mess of black feathers. The only part of him that still existed was his heart that finally stopped beating. Though it soon followed the rest of the dead Fallen Angel as the red Reality Stone glimmered and the organ soon disintegrated in the palm of the human's hand.

The Devils were speechless. In the span of a minute or two, they saw a human completely dominate a Fallen Angel and killed him in such a gruesome fashion without a hint of mercy or remorse. They certainly didn't pity Dohnaseek, but they never expected such brutality from Sean Harris.

"That was certainly something." Rias commented. Sean said nothing as he continued to use the Reality Stone to destroy the blood that coated the Infinity Gauntlet. He looked over to see Issei holding Asia's lifeless body in his arms. Tears ran down his face as he was ashamed for not saving the nun's life.

Even Sean felt the same emotions, though not as powerful as Issei. On this night, an innocent person died over something as trivial as a Sacred Gear. Not only that, but also three more lives were snuffed out because of one person's manipulation. The one responsible may have paid for his actions, but it was far from a victory.

**Whoo! Longest chapter yet, but only by a few hundred words! I hope to keep the content up at this level! Anyway, I'll keep working on the last chapter of this arc and put it up soon, hopefully.**

**As always, Follow/Fav/Review! And don't be afraid to tell me what you think about it! A little criticism never hurt anyone. But a lot of flames will burn me alive! SO NO FLAMES!**

**See you all next time!**


	8. Chapter 8: Behind Enemy Lines (Finale)

**Alright, people! I finally finished the Fallen Angel arc. I'm so glad to be done with this one and I hope that you'll like the ending! There have been some people PM'ing me about if I'll give Sean a Black Order.**

**Originally, I wasn't because Sean isn't much of a social person. But as I thought about the future of this fic and I decided to do it. The roster will consist of members of the Three Factions and humans. The human members will be the most difficult along with the Angels considering that the humans should have Sacred Gears if they're going to be in the Order and I haven't gotten far enough in the anime to determine which Angels would be in there. I can't even find a website to read the manga or LN. If you guys can help me out with that, I'd be grateful.**

**Not much to say now, so I'll just skip ahead to answering your reviews. Oh, actually one more thing. I have been getting some flames lately, so I'll say this. THEY WILL BE IGNORED! Now, time to answer your reviews.**

**Deepak Singh Chauhan: Yeah, I get that. But there's a few reasons why he didn't. I will be explaining more of Sean's limits in the later chapters.**

**Vizard Masky: Yes. Yes it was. I know and I'm already thinking of how they'll interact with each other. I hope to live up to such expectations. Well, you got more!**

**OechsnerC: Just read and you'll find out. Thanks!**

**ClearwingYuta: Thanks! I understand why you want me to do that, but the Riser arc is going to be the arc I'm most excited to write! Don't you worry, I've got SO many ideas for it that I'm sure you're going to love!**

**MrKristoffer1994: Yeah. Like I said, Akeno is my favorite girl in DxD and Harris is known for being sadistic, but I decided to just end it with Dohnaseek. I mean, he would've deserved to have suffered but after everything that happened in the last chapter, he wasn't in a playing mood.**

**fakhri: Thanks, I'm glad to have it! I appreciate it. Well, I wanted to find a fic like mine before I started writing it. So I just made one. I can't tell you how nervous I was when I started all this! Felt like it wasn't going to be any good. I will announce the pairing for Harris at the end of the chapter.**

**Drake: Thanks! I will tell you about the pairings after the chapter. Yes, Issei will be with Rias. But other than that, just read through the chapter.**

**GunBlade2019: Hi! Thanks! I know, it always depresses me whenever I see that part too. I will, as long as you guys keep pumping the live-giving support through my stories!**

**Bladewolf101: I'll tell you after this chapter.**

**RotcehM: Thanks!**

**Chapter 8: Behind Enemy Lines (Finale)**

Sean saw Issei crying over Asia's dead body. All the human could think of was all the things he could've done to avoid this. He could've gotten more involved in the fight with Freed. He could've just killed him instead of making him suffer. He could've rushed down to the chamber and stopped the ritual.

But he didn't. And no matter how much he wanted to change it, he couldn't save Asia without risking destroying all of existence. It made him sick to his stomach that he didn't do more to help.

However, even if he couldn't save Asia, perhaps he could save the other Fallen Angels. They were far away from Sean the whole time that he was here. So it shouldn't be a problem if he tried to save them.

"No." Sean said out loud, gaining the attention of the Devils. Issei stopped his crying over Asia as heard his human friend.

"What?" he asked him.

"I can't accept this. Not only did Asia die because of someone else wanting her Sacred Gear, but three more lives were killed because they were lied to." Sean explained.

"You actually feel sorry for them?" Rias asked in disbelief. "They were ordered to kill Issei because of his own Sacred Gear. Not to mention that they tried to kill you, too."

"Maybe. But after what I learned from Dohnaseek's mind, we don't know what else he lied to them about. I only looked through his memories involving Twilight Healing and Asia, not Issei or me." Sean countered.

"Even if he did, it's too late for them. There are some things you can't change." Rias sighed out. Sean ignored the redheaded Devil as he started to converse with the Time Stone occupant.

_"Chronos, I know what you said before. But please, at least let me save those Fallen Angels. It shouldn't interfere with my past self, right?"_ Sean asked the time god. The Grecian god was silent as he contemplated his host's request. It's true that while the female Fallen Angels weren't innocent, they shouldn't have died because of the machinations of someone like Dohnaseek. Chronos sighed as he reached his decision.

_**"Very well. Just this once, I will let you do this."**_ Chronos said. Sean nodded to him as he was prepared to make the trip back in time.

_**"However, reversing all of time will be exhausting for you. You'll only be able to go back about a couple of minutes. Plus, you'll have to make your way towards where you want to be. Space is Heimdall's power, not mine."**_ Chronos explained the details of the effects of using the Time Stone in such a fashion.

Sean took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly and he held up the Infinity Gauntlet. The Time Stone gleamed its green color as the American got ready to make the trip back in time.

"OK, I've never done this before. But if this works, then a few more lives will be saved." Sean told the Devils and pointed at Rias. "I'll see you earlier."

Rias got confused at what Sean just said. "What are you talking abooooo...?" Before she finished her question, Sean already started using the Time Stone and everything started to slow down to a stop.

After that, everything started moving backwards. Sean didn't stand around to watch what was happening as he remembered Chronos telling him that he had to go to the female Fallen Angels' location while time moved in reverse. As he made his way to the source of the Fallen Angel energy signatures, Sean was starting to feel the effects of time reversal. His breathing was getting more haggard by the second, his body getting heavier with every step he took.

Time was beginning to slow down again as Sean was about to reach his limit in time travel. He noticed that Mittelt was sitting on a tree branch. The look on her face said that she wasn't particularly happy about being where she was. Sean backtracked into the trees so he wouldn't be seen in his tired state.

Everything stopped like back from the future while Sean started to use the Power Stone. Time started back again in its proper direction of forward. Mittelt felt a flicker of an energy that she felt before and looked over in its general direction.

"Wh-What was that?" Mittelt asked out loud, her voice trembling a little from almost sensing Sean's power. The petite Fallen Angel never wanted to see that human again. After failing to kill him, she was overwhelmed by his presence. And when she looked into his black and purple eyes, it was as if he was the personification of fear. Like a living, breathing nightmare that would haunt her for the rest of her long life.

The surge she felt only last for about half a second and she passed it off as her being paranoid. "Calm down, Mittelt. What are the odds that you would actually run into him again?" she tried to convince herself. After a few moments of steady breathing, she finally relaxed. Unfortunately, she soon got restless from standing watch.

"This is why I hate keeping lookout! It's so boring!" Mittelt complained. Though her boredom wouldn't last long as a red light shined in the dark forest and revealed Rias and Akeno, standing in the clearing next to the tree that Mittelt was sitting on.

"Ooh! This night just got a whole lot better!" she said excitedly seeing the pair of Devils appear before her. She jumped off her wooden perch and landed right in front of the tree she as sitting on.

"Hi there! I'm Mittelt and I'm the most awesome Fallen Angel in the history of history!" she introduced herself in her usual pompous flair with a twirl and ending with a curtsy. Sean rolled his eyes at hearing her posturing.

"Well, she's certainly not lacking in self-esteem, is she?" Akeno asked with a closed-eyed smile and her hand on her cheek.

"My servants sensed that you were nearby. Since you're standing guard here, the rest of you must be worried about an attack." Rias assumed.

"Worried? No, we're just in the middle on a top secret ritual that we don't want you Devils interfering with." Mittelt told the Devil girls.

"Not to burst your bubble, but unfortunately, a couple of our younger members are already on their way right now." Akeno informed the Fallen Angel with the same smile she had.

"They're what?! You've got to be fucking kidding me!" Mittelt exclaimed, shocked that some of the Devils got past her.

"Nope. Not only are they not being discreet, but it seems like they brought their human friend along with them." Akeno affirmed.

Mittelt got a chill up her spine at the mention of Sean. _"So I wasn't being paranoid. He _is _here."_

"Something wrong?" Rias asked seeing the Fallen Angel's absence of her previous ire.

Mittelt snapped out of her paralyzed daze as she heard the Devil's question. She shouldn't let her enemies know that she was afraid.

"Of course not! I don't need your stupid Devil pity!" Mittelt shouted at the redhead. "Anyway, it doesn't matter if your little friends got past me! They're way more of us than there are of them!" She turned to the Devils as she finished her rant.

"So why are you here? I hope you're not here to rescue them. Because if that's the case, you'll have to get past me first. I might be little, but I pack a mean punch!" she warned the Devils of the inevitable fight that would follow with a smug smile.

"They're on their own." Rias replied simply.

"Huh?" Mittelt responded in confusion.

"We're not making any attempt to rescue them."

"So what? You're just going to sit back and watch?" Mittelt was baffled at the disregard the redhead showed toward her own allies. She thought for sure that they would at least try to help them.

"Well, rescue or not, I can't let you go. You're totally the captain of your loser squad and if we take you out, then the rest of them will be easy pickings." Mittelt told Rias and Akeno.

"Sorry, but I'm bringing friends to this tea party!" She unfurled her black feathered wings as she made another showy twirl and posed.

"Good work, Mittlet!" a mature female voice said as two figures appeared from behind the Devil girls. One of them was Kalawarner, while the voice came from attractive young woman with violet eyes. She had silky black hair that flowed all the way down to her hips. The attire she wore was almost nonexistent. She had a right shoulder guard with three larges spikes sprouting from it. Her large breasts were barely concealed by black leather straps. Gloves that ran up her arms with small lengths of chains hanging from them. Her tiny black leather thong was held around her hips by three thin straps. The outfit was completed with black thigh-high heel boots.

Mittelt, meanwhile, had an elated smile on her face from the praise she received from the new Fallen Angel.

_"That must be Raynare."_ Sean thought to the gods.

_**"That has got to be the hottest Fallen Angel I've ever seen! And that outfit is **_**definitely**_** enforcing that!"**_ Izanagi declared in his usual lecherous excitement. And in the usual pattern of that, Izanami quickly started beating the shit out of him.

_**"How many times do I have to tell you?! You... are... married! TO ME!"**_ she screamed with hellish fury and emphasized every word each time she tried to smack some sense into her husband. Sean made an inaudible wince as the destruction goddess let out her unholy wails.

_"Now, of all times, is the worst possible moment to be doing this! Please, at least save it until after all of this is over!"_ Sean pleaded to the Shinto couple. They realized their host's situation and decided to heed his call.

"Your little servant should've just minded his own business." Kalawarner told Rias with the same haughty smile as her friend next to her.

Rias and Akeno turned to see Raynare and Kalawarner standing before them with high and mighty smiles. Though the Devils took their expressions in stride.

"Ara ara, looks like everyone's here!" Akeno said as she saw the Fallen Angels' arrival.

"So you're planning on stopping the ritual? We won't allow it!" Raynare declared as she unfurled her wings and took to the air.

"You'll pay for it with your lives!" Kalawarner added as she followed Raynare's lead.

"Akeno." Rias said to her Queen.

"Already on it!" she replied, following the implied order. Akeno raised her hand in the air, causing dark clouds to swirl abover her. Lightning was arcing inside the clouds and a large bolt struck down on Akeno herself.

The flash from the bolt blinded Sean as his eyes were still light-sensitive to see properly in the dark. He covered his eyes until the brightness died down and Sean could see that Akeno's clothes had changed.

She now wore a traditional miko attire that consisted of a white haori with red accents, a red hakama, and a pair of zori with white tabi. This outfit closely resembled what Izanami typically wears. It highlighted her Yamato Nadeshiko beauty even more than usual.

Mittelt was mad at the sudden change of Akeno's garb. "No fair! No one told me about being able to change costumes in this fight!"

_"Is that really an issue right now?"_ Sean thought with a sweatdrop.

_**"Well, not in this particular moment. But you should look your best when in a fight. I see that she's caught your eye with that outfit." **_Morrigan once again teased her host about his crush on Akeno.

_"That, right there, is another thing that should be the last thing I need to deal with right now!"_ Sean chided the Celtic goddess. She only let out a victorious giggle as her host didn't deny her play-mocking.

_**"That's the clothing of our priestesses. I didn't think that one of them would actually become a Devil."**_ Izanami informed Sean. The human paid no attention to the Shinto destruction goddess as he kept his eyes on the impending battle.

Akeno made a few hand signs and raised her arms into the air. Red magic circles started to appear above everyone and scattered around the area.

"A barrier?!" Raynare said in annoyance as she looked around, seeing the air be filled with more of the magical sigils.

"Uh-oh! We're totally screwed!" Mittelt exclaimed with worry.

"Catching my prey inside a cage gets me so hot!" Akeno mentioned with a light blush as she licked the tip of one of her fingers while her entire hand was coated with her lightning magic.

"You planned this from the beginning, didn't you?" Kalawarner angrily asked.

"Yep! And I'm going to take a lot of pleasure seeing the three of you writhe in pain! Hope you're into S&M!" Akeno told them while ending with a singsong tone.

"That's so gross!" Mittelt commented as she joined her fellow Fallen Angels in the air.

"End of the line for you." Rias said to them with her hands on her hips and a confident smile on her face.

_"Sorry, Rias. But that's not how it's ending this time."_ Sean thought to himself as he tried to get up. Unfortunately, he was still tired from the time travel. He tried to use the tree as leverage, but even his arms felt like they were made of lead.

_"Dammit! I can't let her kill them because of that son of a bitch!"_ Sean angrily declared in his head.

_**"I told you that it would be exhausting for you. It's going to take time for you to recover."**_ Chronos told his host about the ramifications of time travel.

_"I don't have time! If I don't do something about this soon, they're going to die!"_ the American retorted back at the Greek god while he kept trying to get back on his feet.

"Go ahead and act as confident as you want!" Kalawarner said to the redheaded Devil.

"Once Dohnaseek completes the ritual, Lord Azazel will reward us!" Raynare added.

Sean just got aggrevated at the mention of the male Fallen Angel. _"She really doesn't have a clue about Dohnaseek's deception."_

_**"He did mention that Raynare admired Azazel so much that she actually fell because of that."**_ Thoth recalled Dohnaseek's description on Raynare, albeit a bit more respectful than the male Fallen's version.

"I see now, so that's what you're doing. You're planning on taking the nun's Sacred Gear and use it for your own purposes." Rias summed up the Fallen Angels' plan. "Taking that from her is taking her life."

"Tragic, but necessary. Though you both should be more concerned about yourselves." Raynare said.

The Fallen Angels began their attack against the Devils. Raynare conjured a red light spear and threw it at Rias. Akeno came to her defense and made a magic circle that blocked the spear. Kalawarner was directly above the Devils and threw two light spears from both hands.

"Akeno, above us." Rias told her Queen. The ravenette looked up to see Kalawarner's attack. Akeno raised her magic circle shield and blocked the second onslaught.

As soon as the light spears were destroyed, Akeno unleashed a lightning bolt to strike the airborne Fallen Angel. Fortunately for Kalawarner, she barely managed to dodge the electric bombardment. Though a few sparks were arcing her body, making her feel some slight jolts.

_"What the hell? She's just going to let Akeno do all the fighting?"_ Sean thought, annoyed with the inaction from the redhead Devil.

_**"It's not like you helped a lot with the Devils."**_ Izanagi told the human, noting his hypocrisy.

_"I was looking for weak points during the fight with Freed! Besides, I ended the fight with the priests and punched Dohnaseek straight through solid concrete AND helped Issei finish him off! So I think I did a hell of a lot more than Rias is doing right now!" _Sean argued his case of his own inaction against the creation god.

_**"OK, OK! You made your point! Just chill out before you're spotted!"**_ Izanagi conceded, knowing that he just lost the argument.

The three Fallen Angels threw their light spears simultaneously at Rias, however Akeno stepped in front of her King and blocked the barrage. The female Fallen Angels were all sitting on the same tree, nonchalantly as they started to see that they were beginning to wear down Akeno.

"That's going to get real old, real fast." Mittelt commented.

"How long exactly do you plan on keeping this up?" Kalawarner asked the Devils with a smug look on her face.

"Your servant must be getting tired from defending you this whole time. Maybe you should've thought this through more." Raynare told Rias, seeing Akeno lightly pant from exhaustion due to all the magic she was using.

"Tell you what, how about you let down this barrier and we'll let go?" Mittelt suggested before she regained her high and mighty demeanor. "Psyche! Like you two are going anywhere even if you did!" she added while wagging her finger at the Devils.

"I kinda feel bad for your minions. By now, they probably think that you abandoned them while Dohnaseek is about to put them out of their misery." she gloated.

"Especially that boy who thought that I wanted to be his girlfriend. I swear he was so desperate that he might as well have a giant flashing neon sign that says 'I'm a virgin!' right over his head." Raynare added. "But what's really pathetic is that you actually need a human's help! They're probably getting skewered with light spears right about now."

"If I were you, I wouldn't underestimate either of them for a second." Rias told them, making them stop their taunting in its tracks.

"Let's just say that the boy you made fun of is the most powerful Pawn that I've ever seen!" she said about Issei. "And as for the human, he's even stronger than my Pawn is, given the abilities he possesses. Even I don't know what his limits are."

Sean was genuinely surprised that Rias would give any kind of compliment to him after turning her down multiple times. Kalawarner had a shameful expression, recounting her defeats from Sean while Mittelt shivered at the mere mention of him. However, Raynare just dismissed the redheaded Devil's boasts.

"Please! That virgin is supposed to be powerful? He only has a Twice Critical! He couldn't even move when I took that blonde brat. And the human? He's just lucky. I could kill him if I had the chance."

_"I'm starting to have second thoughts about saving her specifically."_ Sean thought, not liking the condescending tone from Raynare.

_**"Just remember why you're here in the first place. After you've finished here, you'll never have to see them again."**_ Chronos told his host. Sean's memories of Dohnaseek flashed through his mind and his determination was reinforced. He then continued to watch the skirmish.

"A Pawn? You name your servants after chess pieces? They're the ones that line up in the front, right?" Mittelt asked mockingly.

"Yeah, they're the sacrificial players." Kalawarner answered her fellow Fallen Angel's question.

"Nonsense, we would never sacrifice any of our members. We're family!" Akeno argued.

Raynare's reply was throwing another light spear while the Queen's guard was down. Akeno just barely conjured her magic circle shield to protect herself and her King. But the spear was more powerful than the previous ones, causing the miko to be pushed back from the force of the thrown weapon.

"Well, it doesn't matter what abilities that either of them has! They won't stand a chance against Dohnaseek!" Raynare said. "Especially that little pervert! I'll admit, it was sweet that he put forth so much effort into our date. But it was still so boring that I didn't know which one of us was going to die first! Him by my spear or me from boredom!"

While Raynare kept insulting Issei, Rias was not amused. Sean could feel her power steadily increasing with her anger.

"Hahaha! Raynare told us all the details from their little fling!" Mittelt added.

"What a joke!" Kalawarner insulted the Pawn further. The Fallen Angel trio flew high and they each made their own light spears. They all threw their weapons at the same time and a drill of red, pink, and yellow light was fast approaching Rias.

"Watch out!" Akeno called out to her King. But it wasn't needed as Rias was soon permeated with a strong red aura. Her crimson hair flared up in the air and her bangs overshadowed her eyes, but they could tell that they had a quiet but intense rage. The light spears were immediately destroyed as they touched the aura.

"She deflected them!" Kalawarner said in shock as the trio started to grow worried about the King's sudden flare-up.

"He's not a joke! No one laughs at my servants!" Rias told them with the last restraints of her anger about to break.

"Aw! Now look what you've done!" Akeno said to the Fallen Angels. She smiled as her master was about to deal the final blow.

_"Shit! There's no more time!" _Sean thought as he urged his body to stand. The effort to do so lessened and he was now able to stand on his feet.

"Maybe you shouldn't have taunted her like that!"

Sean tried use the Time Stone, but he was still too tired from time traveling. Time stopped for only about a second before it started back up again.

_"Dammit! I won't get close enough to stop her!"_ Sean cursed as he kept thinking of something to stop Rias from killing the Fallen Angels.

"Whoopsie on you!" Akeno finished as Rias shot out her magic soon after.

_"Think, dammit, think!"_ Sean started to panic as he was cutting it down to the wire. Then he stopped freaking out as he had an idea.

Rias' blast was heading straight for the black winged trio as they covered their faces in fear of being completely destroyed.

...

...

...

A few tense seconds passed by and Rias' eyes went wide as she saw her attack simply vanish from its aerial path. Raynare was the first to uncover her face to see that she and her friends were perfectly fine. Kalawarner and Mittelt soon followed and were both relieved and confused about their survival. Everyone noticed that a large portal was between the Fallen Angels and the Devils.

"What just happened?" Rias asked, perplexed and angry that the ones who insulted her Pawn were still alive.

"I stopped you from killing them."

The five women flinched at the sound of Sean's voice ringing out in the forest. Kalawarner was on guard, ready to make another try to kill the human that humiliated her. Mittelt was shaking with fear as she flew behind Raynare. But Raynare herself was unimpressed with the voice's attempt to startle her.

Both of the Devils, on the other hand, recognized the voice that was speaking to them and were bewildered. When they arrived, they sensed that the human was with the others inside the church and still was. So how was he here and inside the church at the same time?

"Who's there? Show yourself!" Raynare called out to the American in hiding.

"If you insist." Sean replied and walked out into the open, his Infinity Gauntlet shown on his left arm with the Space Stone shining in its place. The Stone soon dimmed and lost its light, which in turn caused the portal to vanish with it.

Rias and Akeno's surprise increased as they saw the human standing before them. Kalawarner's hands were shaking as she saw Sean while Mittelt's shivering intensified from behind Raynare. Rias snapped herself out of her confusion as she remembered what the human had done earlier.

"Harris, why did you stop me from ending those Fallen Angels?" Rias asked with annoyance. Sean looked over to the redheaded Devil.

"It's because that things aren't as cut and dry as you think they are." Sean replied.

"What are you talking about?"

Sean just ignored her as he turned his attention to the Fallen trio that were still hovering in the air.

"You three are getting played. Dohnaseek isn't working for Azazel." he told them. Raynare simply laughed at him.

"Hahaha! And why should we believe you? Trying to protect those little Devil whores?" she mockingly asked, pissing off Rias even more.

"No I'm not, actually." Sean answered in a blasé manner. All five of the women were surprised once again at the American as he continued his explaining his reasons.

"I'm here to stop _them_ from killing _you_. Because you three were supposed to die from that blast." Rias and Akeno couldn't believe what they had just heard. Sean knew that they were going to die and he stopped her?

"Not only were you supposed to die, you died because that asshole Dohnaseek was going to give Asia's Twilight Healing to someone other than Azazel. And if you don't believe me, then you can hear it from the bastard himself in the next..." Sean paused as he checked the time on his phone. "... five minutes."

When he finished, a rumble in the ground was felt by the Devils and the human while it was heard by the Fallen Angels while they were still in the air.

"What was that?" Kalawarner asked.

"If my scheduling is correct, I'd say that would be me punching Dohnaseek straight through solid concrete from the basement and into the church interior." Sean answered.

The shock continued to appear on the faces of the supernatural women as the human clarified the rumble's origin. But as they heard what he said, they were back to being confused.

"Wait, if _you_ punched Dohnaseek, then how are you here right now?" Akeno asked.

Sean turned to the Devils. He knew he had to explain himself when that rumble occurred just then.

"Well, that's because I time-traveled back to the start of this fight."

None of them could even form the words to respond to what they just heard. This human said that he could time travel? They never heard of anything so incredible!

"You... traveled... through time?" Rias slowly repeated what she had just heard. The prospect of time travel was unbelievable. She knew about the Agares Clan's ability to manipulate time, but she had never heard of them actually using time travel.

"Only a few minutes. But that's beside the point." Sean said. He faced the Fallen Angels again as they descended to the ground Raynare in front with Mittelt still cowering behind her and Kalawarner standing beside her scantily clad friend.

"If you three want to live beyond tonight, then you'll follow me. You don't have to believe the words I say, but I'm sure you'll believe the same words coming from Dohnaseek's own mouth." Sean told the three.

Kalawarner was a little beside herself. She knew that Dohnaseek was a bastard and the human did spare her from the last time they met. But that doesn't mean that she would just believe him. Mittelt simply didn't want to be anywhere near the unusually scary human. Raynare still wouldn't listen to anything Sean had to say.

"You think that you can beat us?" Raynare asked him mockingly which started to anger Sean. Raynare started to step forward, but Mittelt grabbed her by the wrist to stop her.

"Raynare, don't! He's not an ordinary human!" the blonde Fallen Angel warned.

"You should listen to Mittelt, Raynare. That Gremory Devil wasn't exaggerating when she said that he was powerful." Kalawarner concurred with Mittelt, which made Raynare flabbergasted. The two hardly ever got along, let alone agreed on anything. But she couldn't imagine that a human was stronger than any of them.

Raynare's surprised look on her face soon turned into a devious smile as an idea came to her mind. "Fine. If we can't take him one-on-one, then we'll just fight him all at once!"

The two Fallen Angels thought about what Raynare proposed and their hesitation started to wash away from their own minds. Even if the human was stronger than the Devil Pawn, he couldn't stand against three Fallen Angels all by himself.

They all took to the air once more and each of them created a single light spear.

_**"Sean, let them throw their spears."**_ Morrigan suddenly suggested in his head. Her host couldn't believe that the motherly goddess could ask him to do such a thing.

_"Are you kidding me?!"_ Sean mentally yelled incredulously.

_**"Let me finish. Use the Power Stone and instead of increasing your endurance, raise the Infinity Gauntlet and focus on trying to absorb them."**_ Morrigan concluded her idea. Sean decided to place his trust in the goddess and did what she said. He raised the Gauntlet in the Fallen trio's direction while the Power Stone started to glow.

"Now die!" Raynare cried out as she, Kalawarner, and Mittelt unleashed their light spears and created another drill-like attack like the one that Rias destroyed.

Sean just stood his ground as the light drill drew closer. Rias and Akeno were about to try and defend the human, but stopped when they noticed something happen to the drill.

Its point started to sharpen as it was only a few feet from piercing Sean where he stood, but it started to warp and narrow itself into Sean's Gauntlet clad left hand. The light spears finally disappeared into the Power Stone and the Infinity Stone glowed even brighter than normal.

Sean clenched his fist as the power from the combined weapon energized him, the fatigue from his time travel started to leave him. It was a few seconds later that the Stone started to return to its normal brightness.

The supernatural women were all dumbfounded from the human's feat, but none more so than the Fallen Angels. Even with their fused attack, it didn't even seem to faze him.

"Whoo!" Sean hollered, feeling the pick-me-up from absorbing the energy of the light spears. "That was unexpected, but much appreciated."

"What the hell was that?! How did you do that?!" Raynare shouted at the human from her floating position.

Sean ignored her as he checked his phone. "Look, I would love to explain all of that. All of it, but we're running out of time." he said while placing the phone back into his pocket. "So, here's what I'm going to offer you. You come with me and I'll stop doing it."

Raynare raised an eyebrow from the unusual offer that the human gave her. "Doing what?" she asked.

As soon as she asked that, the Mind Stone started to emit its own light and Sean raised his hand and grabbed the air just like he did with Kalawarner. Raynare was frozen where she floated as she struggled to regain control of her body.

Sean brought his arm back toward his body which caused Raynare to be pulled toward the human's position. The Fallen Angel couldn't do anything to stop herself from involuntarily flying at Sean. Sean meanwhile relaxed his hand and made it into a fist. He primed his arm for a punch with the Power Stone shined. Raynare felt her muscles relax as her paralysis went away, but she couldn't slow down as Sean threw his punch.

The force of the strike made Raynare to shoot past Kalawarner and Mittelt and crash through multiple trees that blocked the Fallen Angel's path. The other two Fallen Angels watched what transpired with wide eyes. Each tree that Raynare hit only increased the damage she took from the solitary punch from the human. She finally slid across the ground and stopped. The women saw that Raynare was in seriously bad shape. It didn't take a doctor to tell that she had some broken bones, especially in her wings as they were bent out of their normal shape and lied limp on the ground.

However, it didn't stop there. Raynare felt that her body was being dragged back along the path that she flew from. Along the way, she went straight through some of the foliage on the trees until she landed right in front of Sean, who had his open hand pointed at Raynare as if motioning it to control her body. She lied down in a prone position as she strained to move her head to look at the human that supposedly did this to her.

"That. I'll stop doing that." Sean simply told her. Raynare glared at him with all the anger she had. With a single punch, he managed to completely overpower her. She had never felt so humiliated!

"So... what are you going to do? You gonna come with me or am I just wasting my time here?" Sean once again extended his offer to Raynare.

She simply laid on her spot on the ground, in too much pain to try to do anything. She knew she couldn't win a fight with this human, even with Kalawarner and Mittelt. She then thought about her friends. Kalawarner, who had been her friend since she fell. And Mittelt, who had looked up to her after she fell herself. With no other options, she made the only possible decision.

"Fine. We'll go." Raynare relented. Sean grew a small smile on his face, glad that the effort to save them had not been for nothing.

"Alright then. But let me heal you first. It would be a pain in the ass to carry you, so just give me a second." Sean replied as he dug into his pockets. He found what he was searching for and pulled out something that shocked the Fallen Angels.

"No way! Is that...?" Raynare asked incredulously while she saw Sean placing something in his hands.

"Yep. It's Twilight Healing." Sean answered as he wore the twin rings belonging to Asia. Rias and Akeno couldn't believe what they just heard and walked over to the human to see for themselves.

And it was true. Both of the Devils' eyes were wide as they saw that the nun's Sacred Gear was in the human's hands.

"How did you get those?" Rias asked, astounded by this fact.

"Well, Dohnaseek did get Twilight Healing. After that, Issei started to fight him and before he managed to escape, I pushed him while using the Soul Stone and I expelled it from his body." Sean explained as he began to heal Raynare, the normal glow of the Sacred Gear encompassing the Fallen Angel's broken body.

"But you said that the Soul Stone wasn't something you could just use." Rias said what the human told her.

"And it's not! Using the Soul Stone on living things is incredibly dangerous! I could use it, but if I'm not careful, I could end up killing the person I'm using it on!" Sean riposted back to the Devil.

"So, is he dead?" Akeno asked.

"No. Or at least, not yet. Sacred Gears are part of a person's soul. Normally, removing a Sacred Gear would kill the original host. But with the Soul Stone, I can safely remove them, given enough time, and return them easier than taking it. The only reason that he's still alive is because that he just acquired Twilight Healing. It takes time for a Sacred Gear removed with such a method to become part of the new owner's soul, so taking it hardly took any effort at all." Sean clarified as he was just finishing up healing Raynare.

The newly healed Fallen Angel stood up from the ground and flexed her wings. They felt as good as new and her body wasn't in pain anymore. Though she was a little skeptical on why Sean would do this.

"Why? Why would you help us?" Raynare wondered.

"Don't get me wrong. No one of you are innocent in any of this, but like I told you, Dohnaseek was just using the three of you and I want to know how much he was using you." Sean made clear of his intentions.

"Come on, let's walk and talk." he motioned to the Fallen Angels. The Devils were made to follow, but Sean stopped them by holding up his hand.

"You two should teleport to the church. It was like that before I came here. And I don't want the timeline to be compromised in any way." Sean told them.

"And what happens if it is?" Rias asked him.

"All of existence would be destroyed." Sean simply told her with the most serious tone he could muster. All of the women's eyes widen at what he just said. He wasn't joking at all. If they wanted to stay alive, they had to make sure that doesn't happen.

"But before that, I'm going to need a feather from each of you." he requested the Fallen Angels.

"Why?" Kalawarner asked with narrowed eyes.

"Because my past self needs to think that you three died, so he can go back to the past and have all of this-" Sean made a circling gesture his finger, motioning to the situation at that moment. "-make sense."

Ranyare, Kalawarner, and Mittelt were still a bit skeptical about all of this. But after seeing the human use Twilight Healing while Dohnaseek had it and the consequences if they didn't, they were willing to humor him. They unfurled their wings and each of them plucked out one feather each and gave them to Sean, who gave them to Rias.

"When Koneko brings Dohnaseek back into the church after Issei punches him out, show those to him while my past self watches and act like that you killed them. That's the only way to make sure this timeline occurs. After that, just tell us when my past self leaves. When this is all over, you'll never have to see these three again." Sean instructed the redhead.

Rias was still irritated that she didn't punish the female Fallen Angels for insulting Issei. But with everything that has happened, she decided to go with it. She walked over to Akeno and created a transportation magic circle.

"I hope you know what you're doing, Harris." Rias said to the human and disappeared to the church. Sean turned around and started walking towards the church with the Fallen Angels following him.

"Alright, time for you to answer a question I have. And tell the truth, because I'll know if you're lying. Did you know about Issei's Sacred Gear or was it by chance like with me?" Sean asked Raynare, the Mind Stone glowing softly on the Infinity Gauntlet.

"We were only instructed to bring the nun back to Lord Azazel. I was just wandering around town when I sensed the power coming from him. I reported what I found to Dohnaseek. After that, he said that Lord Azazel wanted us to kill him because he felt that the power he had was too much of a threat to us." Raynare explained.

"If you were just told to bring Asia back with you, why did you set up that ritual?" Sean continued his interrogation.

"Dohnaseek told us that Lord Azazel only wanted the Sacred Gear, not the nun." Kalawarner answered.

"That nun has a name. It's Asia Argento. Try using it." Sean sternly told them.

"Anyway, we were told to remove _Asia's_ Twilight Healing and bring it back to Lord Azazel." Kalawarner finished.

Sean said nothing as he stopped using the Mind Stone. He saw that they were indeed telling the truth. They really were victims of circumstance.

"Alright then. Now, after we're all done here, you three are going to leave. Because if you don't, then you'll have to deal with Rias. I took a big risk coming back to this point in time to save you all. But if you're just going to squander this second chance, then I'm not going to help you a third time. Got it?" Sean laid down the law with the Fallen Angels.

"Why would even save us in the first place? What do you get out of doing this?" Kalawarner asked, suspicious of the human's motive for rescuing them from certain death.

"Nothing. I wanted to save you because I don't like it when people think they can do whatever they want with the lives of others. It completely pisses me off!" Sean replied with an irritated tone from the thought of someone using someone else just for their own benefit.

Kalawarner narrowed her eyes at the human. She couldn't believe that he would save them for nothing. She was always a cynic, thinking that no one did anything that seemed selfless without getting something in return. She remained silent as the group approached the church.

"Over here. We can't go inside until my past self leaves to stop Rias from killing you all." Sean told the Fallen Angels while he motioned them over to the windows.

"Here. Place your hand on my shoulders." Sean said to them.

"What for?" Mittelt whimpered out. She used all of her courage to even utter those words to Sean.

"First of all, calm down. I'm not going to hurt you. Second of all, I'm going to hide our energies so the others won't sense us before we're supposed to go in there." the American explained. The Fallen Angels reluctantly did what he said and the Power Stone started to glow faintly. None of the girls could sense each other or Sean, but they focused on what was happening inside the church.

They saw Issei in the middle of his fight with Dohnaseek. His Boosted Gear just changed as the beacon shined from the jewel. Raynare was surprised of the power that emanated from the perverted Devil.

"How is that possible?! He didn't have that much power when I fought him!" Raynare whispered, trying to keep their position hidden.

"You'll find out soon enough. Just keep watching." Sean told her. She didn't say anything else and continued to watch the events that were happening inside.

Dohnaseek landed his twin light spear attack that pierced Issei's legs. The Fallen women grimaced at the scene, but Sean remained emotionless, having seen the event before. Issei stood up and yanked out the light spears from his legs.

"Gotta give the kid credit, he's tough to do that." Kalawarner commented on the Devil's resolve.

Issei was now standing on his injured legs and moved slowly toward Dohnaseek who was stepping away from the Devil out of surprise and a little fear. His Boosted Gear was unleashed into its true form as Issei's power was at its maximum.

"How is that even possible with just a Twice Critical?!" Raynare cried out in a whisper.

"Hey, Rias told you not to underestimate him. And I know you're surprised, but keep it down! You're gonna give away our position!" Sean quietly chided the Fallen Angel who just turned her head away from the human.

Dohnaseek was throwing more light spears at Issei, only for them to be destroyed by the Devil slapping them. One by one, the thrown weapons of light were shattered as Issei made his way closer to Dohnaseek. He finally reached the Fallen Angel but Dohnaseek flew to the other side of the room.

Then the Fallen Angels saw Sean's past self right behind Dohnaseek. They were astonished that two Seans existed as they looked back and forth from Past Sean to Present Sean.

"Oh my God! You really did time travel!" Mittelt exclaimed before covering her mouth.

"Yes! I did! Now please shut the hell up! How many times do I have to tell you all this?!" Present Sean retorted to the blonde Fallen Angel.

Past Sean pushed Dohnaseek and made him lose his balance. The male Fallen Angel stopped himself from falling, he then turned to face Past Sean. After that, Issei started to rush Dohnaseek. The Fallen Angel in question turned to see the Devil try to attack him. However, Issei was suddenly behind Dohnaseek, where Past Sean previously was, while Past Sean was right in front of him.

The Fallen Angel couldn't react in time to stop Issei as the Devil landed his punch. Dohnaseek was sent flying through the air and out the window above the church's large front doors. Raynare, Kalawarner, and Mittelt were shocked to see that Issei was strong enough to do this.

"Alright, we're getting close to going inside." Sean told the women.

"Good. I'm tired of waiting out here." Raynare complained.

Koneko entered the church, dragging Dohnaseek back inside, while Rias was talking to Past Sean. She threw the Fallen Angel toward Rias's feet. The redhead dropped the black feathers in front of Dohnaseek while he simply just looked at them with an emotionless expression on his face.

Akeno soon walked through the door and stood next to them, waiting to signal Sean and the Fallen Angel women to come inside. Rias was talking about Issei's Boosted Gear as the Pawn showed it to his master.

"Wait. His Sacred Gear looks different. I thought it was a Twice Critical." Raynare spoke up, mentioning the Gear's new look.

"That's because it's not a Twice Critical. It's called Boosted Gear, which is supoosedly a Longinus-class Gear." Sean said.

"What?! The Sacred Gear that's part of the Longinus-class?!" she quietly yelled. Sean quickly covered her mouth so she wouldn't give away their hiding spot.

"Do I seriously have to keep your mouth covered so you won't end up destroying all of existence?! Are you that fucking stupid?!" Sean whispered with frustration through gritted teeth. He turned her head to face him.

"Either you keep your mouth shut or I'll wipe it right off your face!" he threatened, trying to keep his irate tone as soft as possible. Raynare didn't say anything else when Sean took his hand off her mouth.

Rias held her hand out while it was coated with her demonic power. She was about to obliterate Dohnaseek when Past Sean stopped her. The redhead was confused that the human had prevented her from killing the Fallen Angel. Past Sean talked about his reasons for impeding Dohnaseek's demise. The doomed man refused to say anything about his superior, but Past Sean wouldn't have it as he grabbed Dohnaseek's face and began his mental interrogation.

"What are you doing to him?" Kalawarner quietly asked.

"I'm searching through his memories on anything having to do with Asia and Twilight Healing." Sean explained.

"You can do that?" Mittelt wondered.

"Yep. But keep paying attention. This is where things get real." Sean told them as his past self let go of Dohnaseek's face.

_"So, you _are _working for someone. Only it's not Azazel." Past Sean said to Dohnaseek. _The three Fallen Angels heard the human's past self while they looked towards their supposed cohort and saw that he said nothing to defend himself.

_"Those three Fallen Angels you killed were misled by this guy. Their real objective was to just bring Asia back so Azazel can study Twilight Healing." Past Sean told the Devils._

_"And after everything was said and done, he was going to keep them as pets, weren't you?" the human said while looking at Dohnaseek with contempt._

_"So what if I did? Raynare was always such a slut for Azazel. She even fell because of her adoration for that spineless excuse of a Fallen Angel. She'd be a better slut when I got my hands on her. The other two were just bonuses." Dohnaseek apprised the entire group without a hint of shame._

Raynare placed her free hand over her mouth. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. Dohnaseek had lied to them from the start! He was just playing them just like Sean had said. Not only that, Dohnaseek was going to keep her and her friends as pets. But worst of all, at least to her, she had unknowingly disobeyed Azazel!

Mittelt was a little taken back. The human that she feared was telling the truth the whole time. The same human that terrified her with just a simple glare. When he arrived at the spot in the forest, she thought for sure that he was there to kill them for what they were doing. But instead, he saved them from death, showed them that they were being used, and prevented them from suffering under Dohnaseek's sick plans.

Kalawarner was more angry than shocked. She knew of the male Fallen's perversions and she wanted nothing more than to kill him for what he tried to do once they were done with their mission. She was about to march inside and kill the bastard when Present Sean grabbed her wrist.

"Let me go!" she demanded the human.

"Just wait." Present Sean told her. She decided to calm down and listen after everything that has happened.

Past Sean balled up his Gauntlet-clad fist and grabbed Dohnaseek by the jaw with his normal hand. The Fallen women noticed that the purple gem on the Gauntlet was glowing. Mittelt shivered as she saw the same black and glowing purple eyes on Past Sean's face. Raynare and Kalawarner were feeling the same fear that Mittelt did, though not on the same level. Mostly, because it was directed at Dohnaseek.

The human's past self demanded that the Fallen Angel in his grasp looked him in the eye. And then, he thrusted his left arm through Dohnaseek's chest, frightening the Fallen women that saw the strength that the human possessed. Blood flew out of Dohnaseek's body while Past Sean's hand held his still-beating heart. He then ripped his arm out and showed the displaced organ to its owner. Finally, he pushed Dohnaseek away from him and the fatally wounded Fallen Angel exploded into black feathers.

"You... actually killed him." Mittelt whimpered out.

"Yeah." Sean replied with a nod. "After seeing what happened in his memories and what he said, I just lost it. Bastards like him don't deserve mercy from me."

They went back to looking inside the church to see the human's past self talk about not accepting the way things played out and Rias arguing about saving the Fallen trio from her execution. Though, Past Sean just ignored all of it and the green Time Stone on his thumb started to glow. Outside of the time travel perspective, where everything slowed down and went backwards, Past Sean simply vanished from everyone's sight.

"You can come in now." Akeno called out from the doors of the church. The human and Fallen Angels walked over to the entrance and went inside the church. Everyone besides Rias and Akeno were shocked to see Sean with the Fallen Angels that were supposedly dead.

"Wait, what the hell?! I thought they were dead!" Issei yelled out, angered to see that Raynare/Yuuma was still alive after everything that has happened since they met.

"They were. I said that I was going to save them and I did. I asked Rias to act like she killed them so my past self would go back to the past to save them." Sean calmly said to the Devil.

"So what? You saved them but you didn't save Asia?!" Issei continued to yell as he marched over to the human. Sean narrowed his eyes at the Devil's accusation. "She didn't do anything wrong! You said it yourself that she died for a stupid reason and you didn't help her?!"

Sean had enough of Issei's questioning of his motives. He punched the Devil in the face with just enough force for Issei to stop his ranting. Everyone else stood surprised that Sean would hurt his friend.

"You think I wanted her to die?!" Sean shouted at Issei. "You think I didn't try to find a way to save her?!" He brought his fist down and quelled his anger of being insulted of not valuing Asia's life.

"I wanted to go back and save her. That was the first thing that I wanted to do. But I couldn't." Sean started to explain with his head down in shame. "I was too directly involved with Asia's rescue. If I ran into my past self, it would create a time paradox that could annihilate all of existence. So, I wouldn't just be killing Asia. I'd be killing myself, you, all of us, and everything that exists! No matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't go back and risk destroying everything." Sean finished with a desolate and quiet tone.

The Devils had looks of understanding and sadness on their faces. Issei started to feel regretful for thinking that the human didn't care about what happened to Asia. He came with him when he asked him to, so why did he even think that? He was just angry at Dohnaseek for killing Asia, angry that Raynare was still alive even though she killed him. But most of all, he was angry at himself for not saving his friend.

For a few moments, no one said anything. The atmosphere of depression over Asia's death only grew heavier with each passing second. Even the Fallen women didn't speak when they heard of the human's remorseful exposition.

"But there is one thing I can do." Sean suddenly said, breaking the silence. He walked over to Asia's body and took out Twilight Healing from his pocket.

"Hey! That's Asia's Twilight Healing!" Issei mentioned.

"Yeah. The Soul Stone affects life and anything else that is connected with it, like Sacred Gears. When I pushed Dohnaseek before he escaped, I used it to remove Twilight Healing from his own soul. These should be with its original master." Sean said as he placed the rings on Asia's fingers. Issei went back to the deceased nun while Sean approached the Fallen Angels.

"Alright, a deal's a deal. You three leave and go back to Azazel." Sean told them.

Mittelt was all for getting as far away from Sean as possible. Kalawarner didn't want to be around the human and his "altruistic" attitude. Raynare had been given a chance to make amends to Azazel and she would take it. She only hope that he would be merciful.

"Yes, we will return to the Grigori and accept the consequences." Raynare spoke for the three of them. "Thank you for saving our lives."

"Forget it. But I want to make this clear if I didn't before. If you do anything that gets yourselves in this kind of situation again, I won't be saving you a second time. So you better tread carefully from now on." Sean warned them.

Kalawarner stared down Sean even more after what he said. If he was as noble as he made his reasons out to be, then he wouldn't have said anything like that. But after seeing what he did to Dohnaseek, she decided to keep her thoughts to herself.

Mittelt just nodded frantically as she stood behind Raynare. Even though that he saved them from Rias, she still couldn't get over the fear she felt when Sean had her in his grasp when she first encountered him.

Raynare simply nodded at his warning. She turned around and started to leave the church with Mittelt following closely behind her. Kalawarner took a few more moments to glare at Sean while he matched it with his own. The Fallen Angel soon broke her scowling and went after her friends.

After seeing the Fallen Angels take their leave, Sean went over to the Devils as Issei was once again grieving over Asia. The shame and guilt that built up inside him as coming to a head as his tears started running down his face again.

"Even though you all came to help me and I fought as hard as I could, I failed. And now she's gone! Asia, please forgive me!" Issei begged to the passed on nun as his tears continued to fall.

"There's nothing to be sorry for. You're still new to this world. No one here is placing blame on you, least of all Asia." Rias consoled her Pawn.

"But... I..."

"Here, let me show you something." Rias said while digging into her pocket and she pulled out a Bishop chess piece. Sean narrowed his eyes at her as he knew where she was going with it.

"A chess piece?" the Pawn asked as he saw it in Rias's hand.

"Uh-huh. That's the Bishop piece." Akeno told him as she stood behind Rias.

"The Bishop's role in a peerage is to heal other Devils. Perhaps the timing is right. We could use a good clergyman." Rias explained. She walked over to Asia and was about to place the piece on her chest. Sean, however, grabbed the wrist that held the chess piece.

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?" Sean asked with irritation.

"I'm going to bring Asia back to life." Rias told him.

"As a Devil."

"That's right." She affirmed as if it was nothing.

"You are planning to resurrect Asia, a nun, as a Devil." Sean repeated.

"Yes. I don't think I can be clearer than that." Rias said, starting to get annoyed from having to repeat herself.

"It's not understanding that's the problem. It's that you're planning on bringing back someone who has pledged their life to God as a Devil! What do you think is gonna happen when she finds out about that?" the human argued.

Sean and Rias stared each other down as they were in a stalemate of deciding Asia's fate. Sean didn't want Asia to be dead, but reviving a nun like Asia into her inverse would be devastating to her. Rias wanted to bring her back in order to bolster her peerage's ranks as well as give her Pawn's friend back. None of the others said anything, but stood ready in case the confrontation got out of hand.

"Sean, we should let her do it." The human looked over to Issei after he agreed with Rias's motion to reincarnate Asia.

"Issei, think about what you're saying."

"I get what you're trying to say. But it still isn't right. All she wanted in life was to make friends! I know that it's a drastic change, but I'll be there to help her through it! She doesn't deserve to die like this!" Issei passionately reasoned to his human friend.

Sean was silent as he still held Rias's wrist. He was sure that Issei would keep his word to help Asia through being a Devil, but that was still a pretty obstacle to overcome. Even if Asia didn't mind being friends with a Devil like Issei, it didn't change what could happen if she turned into a Devil.

_**"Let her go, Sean."**_ Yama suddenly told his host through their mental link.

_"Yama? But what about-"_

_**"I know you're concerned about the sister, but I believe that she will be fine. It might be a shock to her, but she will adjust."**_

Sean was surprised that Yama could be so sure about this kind of situation. Then again, this was Yama he was thinking about. He is a judge of souls. He, of all the deities in his Gauntlet, would know best about the character of others. With that, Sean finally released Rias.

"Issei, please move Asia to that open space on the floor." The redheaded Devil told her Pawn. Issei did so as he gently bridal-carried Asia to the spot Rias pointed. She then placed the Bishop piece on Asia's chest. After that, a red magic circle was rotating underneath Asia's body. Rias raised her arms and began a chant.

"In the name of Rias Gremory, I call to Asia Argento! Hear my command! Return thy soul from the shadows of Death to the human realm! Rise once more as my demon servant! Rejoice, for you have been given new life! Wake as my healer and clergyman!"

As Rias finished her reciting, the Bishop piece on Asia's chest glowed red and sank into her body. The magic circle disappeared and Asia's Twilight Healing started to glow. It didn't last long and when the shine dissipated, it disappeared.

Asia's body began to twitch and started to open her eyes. She started to breathe again and sat up to see the Devils and the human that helped her.

"You're alive!" Issei said with joy as he knelt down to look at Asia on her level. He then turned to Rias.

"It is really her, right?" he asked his master.

"It is. I don't make it a habit of reviving the deceased, but her power may be useful. From here on, you're her protector. You are the senior Devil, after all." Rias told him.

"Issei, am I here?" the newly revived Devil asked in confusion as she looked around her surroundings.

"Yes, and I'm so happy! You're home!" Issei cried as he hugged Asia, his tears were now joyful ones. His friend was alive and he would do everything he could to make sure she stayed that way.

Everyone looking at the touching scene had a smile on their face. Even Sean, despite his protests about this scenario.

_"Perhaps, this was for the best."_ Sean thought.

_**"Maybe. But this is still the beginning."**_ Chronos said.

_**"Oh, don't be such a downer, Chronos. Let's just enjoy the moment!"**_ Morrigan dismissed the time god's serious demeanor as they all saw the reunion.

Sean decided to call it a night and began to leave the church. The Devils were watching his departure. He didn't want to be part of Rias's peerage, yet he chose to help them to save Asia. They had to wonder why he would do such a thing.

"Harris, wait!"

Sean stopped right in front of the double doors that led outside and turned to see that Rias was calling out to him as she stood in front of her peerage. Sean let out a sigh as he wanted to go back to his apartment and sleep.

"You have picked a seriously inappropriate moment to make another pitch of me joining your peerage. I told you it's not going to happen!"

"No, it's not that." Rias calmed the human, stopping him in his tracks. Sean was surprised that the redhead wasn't going to try and make another attempt to persuade him to be a part of her peerage. Especially with knowing of the abilities that he kept from her.

"Then what is it?" he asked, wondering why Rias would hold him up if not for her peerage.

"I just wanted to thank you. And not just for tonight, for all the times you helped us. Even though you had nothing to do any of this, you still helped Issei and the rest of my servants save Asia." Sean couldn't believe what he was hearing. A Devil, a creature known for its pride, was showing gratitude to a human.

"But I have to know. Why?"

Sean said nothing as he thought about the reason he would help them. Rias was right about one thing: he didn't have to help them. He had nothing to do with what happened. He could've ignored tonight and they wouldn't bat an eye. But to Sean, the reason was obvious.

"It's because that Issei genuinely wanted to save Asia. He had nothing to gain, yet he was determined to save her, even if it cost him his life. That's why I helped."

Rias smiled as she listened to Sean's motives. She was grateful that none of her servants were injured or worse. And although he refused her on a couple of occasions, he still went out of his way to aid them.

"Then I wish to thank you once again. If you want, I can give you a reward for your efforts." she offered to the human. But Sean just shook his head in refusal.

"It's fine. Not to be rude, but there's nothing much that I want. The only thing I want is to live my life the way I want." With that, he turned back around and left the church, without another word.

**XXXXX**

Sean returned to his apartment and started to get ready to go back to bed. He looked at his phone and saw that it has only been half an hour since he left with Issei and the others.

The energy he received from absorbing the Fallen women's light spears was dying down and the fatigue from the time travel was coming back. His limbs were heavy as he took a shower to get rid of all the filth he got from the battle at the church.

The hot water from the shower was relaxing his muscles and felt his arms become lighter, if not for a short time. He chose not to take too long and got out. He dried himself off and put on his sleep clothes. He plopped himself onto his bed and immediately shut his heavy eyelids. Sean opened his eyes and was back inside his mindscape with all the gods sitting on their thrones in front of their rooms.

_**"Now you know the full backlash of that power."**_ Chronos reminded his host of his physical condition.

_"Yeah, I don't think I'm going to use that power again anytime soon."_ Sean sighed out, feeling the exhaustion even in his dreams.

_**"I'm glad that Asia is going to be fine. Even if she's going to be a Devil from now on."**_ Morrigan said, cheerful of the nun being alive once more.

_**"I'm glad that you finally decided to fight, Sean. Still, I was hoping it would've have been more of a battle than that."**_ Heimdall commented.

_**"Heimdall, must you always be such a barbarian?"**_ Thoth asked the Norse god. The knowledge god never cared for the warrior's pride that Heimdall seem to uphold or the need for battle he can't seem to get enough of.

_**"It's been a while since you've actually made any sort of remark towards me, Thoth. I just assumed you finally learned to mind yourself to your books."**_

_**"I may not enjoy violence like you do, but I'm certainly not going to cower from you."**_

_**"Is that right? Then, perhaps you'd like to actually pick up a weapon and prove your worth?"**_

_**"As if I would reduce myself to your unrefined level."**_

_**"Wow, I see they haven't changed much."**_ Izanagi mentioned.

_**"Yes. I only wish their silence would've lasted longer."**_ Yama added to the Shinto god's observation.

_**"I agree. They can be as annoying as Izanagi and Izanami when they fight."**_ Chronos threw in his two cents.

_**"More like Izanami fights and Izanagi gets his ass handed to him."**_ Morrigan teased the Shinto couple.

_**"That's his own fault for being a pervert!"**_ Izanami yelled out, thinking about her husband's depraved nature.

_"Would you all stop shouting?! I really need to get some sleep!"_ Sean raised his voice over all the others so he could be heard.

The divine beings stopped their bickering and looked over to their host. They realized that he had been through a lot in such a short time. Fighting for his life against many enemies, witnessing Asia die, killing Dohnaseek for being the one responsible, going back in time to save Raynare, Kalawarner, and Mittelt from dying for nothing, and allowing Rias to revive Asia as a Devil.

_**"We're sorry, Sean."**_ Morrigan apologized for the group, breaking the silence. _**"We'll let you sleep now."**_

Sean let out a small sigh of frustration from dealing with the day-to-day bickering of the divine beings. _"I'm sorry for yelling like that. It's just been a long night."_

_**"You have nothing to apologize for."**_ Thoth assured the human.

_**"Yes, we may not get along all the time. But we will set aside our differences if it means that you'll be happy."**_ Izanami agreed with the Egyptian god. The others said nothing but nodded, also showing their agreement with her.

_"Thanks everyone."_ Sean smiled as he felt the kindness that the occupants of the Infinity Gauntlet showed him. The gods returned their own smiles, showing how much they cared about their host.

Sean then slipped into his blissful slumber, resting his overworked body and overtaxed mind. After everything that has happened, he wasn't sure what would be in his future. But he did know one thing.

He was not looking forward to waking up for school tomorrow.

**Finally! I finally finished it! I hope you enjoyed it! Now for Sean's pairing, it will be a harem. I mean, come on. This is High School DxD. Of course it's going to be a harem. I don't mean to sound like a dick, but it just wouldn't be DxD without a harem. If you haven't figured it out, Akeno will definitely be in the harem. I already have some more girls that will be in it. But I'm keeping their identities a secret. You want to know who they are, you'll have to keep reading.**

**Now with your pairing questions out of the way, I have some bad news. I will be focusing on Same Dream, New Life for a bit. Maybe two chapters before I come back to this one. I'm sorry, but I can't play favorites with my stories. I hope you guys will read that one too.**

**As always, Follow/Fav/Review**

**See you all next time!**


	9. Chapter 9: Life Adjustments

**Hey everybody! I know it's been a while, but you will wait no more! I finally finished this chapter! I can't tell you how excited I am for doing this! I'm sure that some of you have seen my hiatus notice for Same Dream, New Life. Well, that's good news for you guys! Bad news for MHA fans. Anyway, I hope you'll all enjoy this chapter! But before that, let's answer some reviews!**

**RotcehM, ClearwingYuta, MasterOfDragonsGod, Guest5: Thanks for you support!**

**Guest1: As I've said, Rias will be with Issei. Don't you worry about that.**

**OechsnerC: Thank you! It helps me keep going knowing that you like it! That is something for a future chapter to tell you.**

**Marco Geddes: You're welcome! Keep up the support and I will!**

**GunBlade2019: Well, given some of the girls' reasons for joining Issei's harem, I doubt that realistically that it will stay at so low of a number. Besides, I'm still a little unsure on exactly how many girls will be in it.**

**Bladewolf101: Thank you for your suggestions! I will admit that you named some of the girls I had in mind for Sean. And I also want to thank you for giving me an idea for something that relates to the future of this fic. So once again, thank you!**

**Guest2: I haven't seen Tokyo Ghoul. I tried to a while ago, but I never got into it. I might take another look at it, but I don't know. Plus, I'm not sure if the Infinity Gauntlet would be a good fit in that universe.**

**Guest3: I'm not sure if you're flaming me, but I haven't read much of the comics to get a good grasp of the concept of the Cosmic Cube. I did see that The Heart Of The Universe isn't really canon, and the Anti-Life Equation is DC, not Marvel.**

**Guest4: I looked up that song on YouTube and I like it! Thanks for that!**

**OK! With all that out of the way, IT'S TIME TO GET READING ON THE NEW CHAPTER!**

**Chapter 9: Life Adjustments**

Sean opened his eyes to see the morning light shining through his window. What woke him up was the ringing of the alarm he set on his phone. The human let out a groan of annoyance as he swiped the screen to set the phone to snooze and went right back to sleep. It was bad enough that he stayed up most of the night, but now he had to get up for school the very next day.

_**"Sean, you know you have to wake up."**_ Morrigan gently prodded to her host, trying to rouse him from his slumber.

_"Man, it's too early for this. Honestly, I just feel like skipping today."_ Sean replied drowsily as he turned his body around as he layed in his bed.

_**"You will do nothing of the sort! It's your duty as a student to attend every class, every day until you graduate!"**_ Heimdall lectured him.

_**"Not only that, but if you keep on with your sleeping habits as they are, your grades will inevitably slip."**_ Thoth added.

_"Jeez, you guys sound like Sona right now."_

_**"She does have a point. The only reason we let you do this is because that you kept up with your grades well enough that you deserved a reward."**_

_**"But that's going to stop right now! So get your lazy ass out of bed and get ready for school!"**_ Heimdall ordered Sean.

_"I find it funny that you two are agreeing on something when you were just arguing with each other last night." _the human said before placed the pillow he was resting his head on over his ears. Even though, it wouldn't stop him from hearing them.

_**"SEAN HARRIS! YOU GET OUT OF THAT BED THIS INSTANT OR I'M GOING TO MAKE WHAT I DO TO IZANAGI LOOK LIKE A MERCY!"**_ Izanami shouted in her host's head with all of her furious might. With that assault on his eardrums and the headache that would undoubtedly follow, Sean snapped his body upright in fear. One thing that was always true with Izanami was that she followed through on her threats.

_"OK! OK! I'm up! I'm up!"_ Sean responded as quick as he could to calm the Shinto destruction goddess' anger.

_**"Yeah. Me too. Thanks a lot for that, Izanami."**_ Izanagi grumbled as he started to wake up himself.

_**"I'm sorry, Izanagi. You can go back to sleep if you want."**_ she apologized in an out-of-character kind of gentleness. Izanagi couldn't agree more with that idea and soon went back to bed.

Sean's expression changed to one of jealousy as he heard Izanami let her husband sleep. He looked back toward his own bed, desperately wanting to return to its comfortable embrace.

_**"EYES FORWARD! TAKE A SHOWER AND GET YOUR SCHOOL CLOTHES ON!"**_

The host's head suddenly spun back to its normal position and he did what he could to wake up. After the shower and putting his school uniform on, he started to brew some coffee to really wake him up. Normally, he didn't drink coffee because of its consistently bitter taste, no matter how much sugar and creamer he put in it. But desperate times, desperate measures.

He poured himself a cup of the caffeinated beverage, dropped an ice cube in it stirred it with a spoon. When he did drink coffee, Sean liked it cold or at least a little warm. He took a small sip to test out the temperature and found it to be acceptable enough to drink. Gulp after gulp of the breakfast brew, he felt the caffeine work its stimulating magic. His eyes widened and his awareness perking up, he felt like he was ready to tolerate school for the day.

He looked down at his phone and saw that he didn't have enough time to make his own breakfast. So he decided to just take an apple and a banana to eat while he went to school.

**XXXXX**

Sean walked into his home classroom a couple of minutes before class was supposed to start. He saw Issei sitting at his chair and the Devil saw his human friend approaching his desk.

"Hey Harris." Issei greeted with a smile on his face.

"Sup, Issei." Sean returned the greeting with a dull tone in his voice.

"You OK?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just tired after staying up last night." Sean told him, giving a vague explanation to the pervert so nobody around them would know what happened that night.

"Right. Well, again, thank for helping me out with Asia." Issei softly spoke so only the human could hear.

"You're welcome. Speaking of, is Asia OK?"

Issei's expression turned into one of worry at the mention of the ex-nun's condition. "She's fine, but she's not taking the fact that she's a Devil very well. She hasn't said a word since she woke up this morning."

Sean sighed at that. He wasn't surprised to hear that. It was the exact thing he was worried about when Rias resurrected her. How could she think that Asia would just go with the flow about becoming a Devil? The ex-sister was going from one side of the religious spectrum to the other in no time at all. Or was it that she just wanted to bring Asia back because of her Twilight Healing?

"Have you tried to talk to her about it?" Sean asked Issei. The Devil just shook his head in response.

"No. Since she couldn't stay at the church anymore, Rias moved her into the ORC clubhouse until she can find a more suitable home for her."

Sean had his hand on his face and dragged it down in frustration. With school happening, they couldn't just go down there right now to talk to her.

"Hey. I'll go down there with you and talk to her."

"Really? You'd do that?"

"Yeah. I mean, it has to be pretty shocking for her to be what she is now. And we're the ones that she knows the best, even if it was just for a short while. I think that it would be best for us to be there for her and try to help ease her into this transition."

Issei smiled at the consideration Sean conveyed. He may have been a jerk to him and the others of the Perverted Trio, but he's still going out of his way to help Asia.

"Thanks! I appreciate it! And I know that Asia will too!"

"No problem."

The bell rang to signal the start of class and the teacher walked toward the chalkboard to begin the lesson. Sean just only hoped that he would stay awake so not to attract the ire of the instructor.

**XXXXX**

Sean was sitting in his usual setting for his naps as it was time for lunch. He still didn't feel comfortable being around people even if he was starting to socialize. His dealings with bullies in America made him feel wary and paranoid around people he didn't know, so he always made sure that he was well enough away from anyone else.

He opened his backpack and took out his lunchbox. He felt that it was a little light, so he opened it and found it to be empty.

_"Dammit! I was too rushed to make a lunch today!"_ Sean mentally cursed at his lack of a midday meal.

_**"Well, if you woke up when we told you to, then this wouldn't have been a problem."**_ Izanami retorted.

Sean brushed off the Shinto goddess as he tried to figure out how to solve his lunch problem. He thought about going to the cafeteria, but he didn't want to deal with the usual praise from the girls and the hate from the guys. It's not like he can just go home and make himself something. And he definitely wasn't just going to ditch school just to get take-out.

Then Sean slapped his forehead when an idea popped up and cursed himself for not thinking of it sooner. He looked around to make sure the coast was clear. Soon as he was sure, he used his Gauntlet with the Space Stone glowing and created a portal that fit inside the open lunchbox. The portal showed the inside of his fridge and all the leftover food that was there.

_**"I can't believe you're using misusing my power just to acquire food from your own home."**_ Heimdall deadpanned.

_"Well, it's the best solution I have that doesn't involve wading through the literal loving/hateful student body. And at least this way, it'll just look like I'm just reaching into my lunchbox to take out my lunch."_

_**"What's wrong with basking in the adoration of the girl in school? I really need to teach you how to be interested in girls."**_ Izanagi spoke up.

_**"You sure you're not just doing it for yourself, **_**Darling~?**_**"**_ Izanami questioned, ending with a faux sweet tone as she called him "Darling".

_**"Izanami, I know you don't trust me when it comes to other women. But you can't deny that Sean should actually have an interest in looking for a girlfriend."**_ Izanagi reasoned.

_**"He does have a point. He can't just stay alone for the rest of his life."**_ Morrigan added.

_"This again? Guys, I'm fine."_

_**"For now. But Sean, you need to get out there and actually make some friends. And maybe even get a date with Akeno~."**_

_"Morrigan!"_

_**"Oh come on! You should at least try to talk to her! You can lie to yourself, but you can't lie to us. You like her!"**_ Izanagi argued.

Sean sighed at the deities pushing him to further socialize with people. But did he like Akeno? Sure, she's beautiful and she seemed nice, but he didn't really know about what he was feeling about her. Not only that, but going on a date with her? He wouldn't even know where to begin to think about how to do that! He chose to put it off for another time.

Looking through the portal inside his lunchbox, he saw the leftovers he made from the last few nights. Spaghetti, fried chicken, and even some curry. He did try to eat some of the local food. However, there was one thing in the fridge that caught his eye. His favorite food, both to eat and to make: a philly cheesesteak sandwich. It was half-eaten from a few days ago and he wanted to finish it before it spoiled.

Normally, Sean would've reheated it. But he didn't mind eating it cold. He reached through the portal and grabbed the sandwich. Looking at it just made the human even hungrier than before. He started to eat it. Not as enjoyable if it was warm, but it was still good. Though, he thought it could use a little something. Taking another look inside the portal, he found a bottle of steak sauce. He opened the bread and started pouring it in a straight line across the sandwich; he put the bottle back and took another bite. Satisfied with the additional condiment, he continued eating his lunch.

"Hey."

Sean stopped eating to see Koneko standing next to him with a lunchbox of her own in her hand. He swallowed the food he had in his mouth before he started to speak.

"Hey yourself. What are you doing out here?"

"I was going to eat lunch when I saw you here. Why are you eating lunch all the way out here?" the Rook asked, wondering about why the human would eat in such of an out-of-the-way place.

"Eh, I just don't like being around other people." Sean responded with a shrug. After hearing that, Koneko felt like she was intruding and decided to leave him be.

"Oh. Well, I'll leave you alone then." she turned around and began to return to the school.

"You don't have to do that." Koneko stopped and turned back to human in confusion.

"You just said that you don't like being around other people."

"Yeah. But you seem alright. Go ahead, sit down and eat some lunch." Sean didn't mind Koneko. She wasn't one of the fangirls that constantly bugged him with their advances. Compared to that, Koneko was a breath of fresh air. Koneko herself sat down against a tree and started to eat her own lunch.

Sean continued to eat his sandwich while Koneko seemed to eating a piece of chocolate cake. The human thought it was strange to be eating cake for lunch, but he decided to keep that to himself. He went back to his lunchbox and pulled out a can of soda. Then Sean had an idea to play a little music while they ate. He reached into his backpack and took out a Bluetooth speaker for his phone.

"You don't mind if I play some music, do you?" Sean asked Koneko. She gave the human a shrug in response, not really caring.

Sean set up the speaker and scroll through his song list on his phone and found one that he hadn't heard in a while. He pushed play and lowered the volume on the speaker so not to attract any unwanted attention.

The speaker began to play "Gin and Juice" by Snoop Dogg. Sean started to bang his head along with the beat and soon started to sing along with the rap.

"Rollin' down the street, smokin' endo, sippin' on gin and juice, laid back-"

"With my mind on my money and my money on my mind."

Sean looked over to Koneko as she joined in on the sing along. She looked away from the human and had a faint blush of embarrassment when she subconsciously slipped into the lyrics. Sean let out a small laugh.

"Hehehe, you like Snoop Dogg?" Koneko was silent for a moment, still self-conscious about her involvement with getting too into the song. She eventually replied with a small nod, eyes not meeting Sean.

"Hey, you don't have anything to be ashamed about." Sean told the Devil, trying to make her feel better. She then faced Sean in slight surprise. Sean took her silence as a sign to explain himself.

"You like listening to this? That's fine. If you want to sing along to it, then go right ahead. It just shows how much you like it. I wasn't laughing at you; I was just surprised because I didn't think would actually do it. Besides, it's not like I have room to laugh at you anyway. I mean, I was singing it too."

Koneko had a small, barely noticeable smile on her face. She was glad that Sean didn't make fun of her. If that had happened, she'd beat the crap out of him. The music was still playing as they went back to their lunch.

After finishing their lunches, Koneko left her spot while Sean stayed where he was. There was still some time before the next class, so he decided to take a nap.

_**"Really? You're going to take a nap after what happened last time?"**_ Izanami incredulously asked her host.

_"Relax. I've got time. And besides, I'm going to set an alarm on my phone so I won't miss the next class. This way, I won't be late and I won't have to hear another lecture from Sona."_

None of the gods had a quick response to his planning as Sean began setting his phone alarm for ten minutes before class. Plenty of time to get back to class.

_**"Fine. But if you're late for class this time, I'm going to have you marathon running all throughout Kuoh until you pass out."**_ Heimdall sighed out with a tone that promise torturing exercise.

_"Then I'll make sure that the alarm volume is all the way up."_ Sean placated the Norse god as he did just what he said he would do. With the volume maxed out, Sean leaned back into the tree was sitting in front of, took off his glasses, placed them next to him, and closed his eyes.

**XXXXX**

Sona was walking through the grounds doing the same thing did whenever she heard the name "Sean Harris": looking all over the grounds to find his sleeping form. She had been through this situation plenty of times since the American enrolled into Kuoh Academy last year. She had been through this so many times, she could even had scheduled this walkabout down to the minute.

Before learning about his Sacred Gear, she hadn't thought much of him. Though with all of his lazy antics, he was exceptionally bright. He aced every assignment he was given, passed every test with flying colors, and was even placed in the top ten among not just the second-years, but all of the school.

Her only concern was that he wasn't putting forth enough effort into his school life. Sean didn't participate in any of the clubs or extracurricular activities. He just did his work and went home. He had a sense of decency after hearing from the other girls about how he would get the Perverted Trio in trouble. She tried to encourage him to engage in school life by offering him his own Disciplinary Committee, only for him to turn it down.

She couldn't believe the slothfulness of the human. It was like he was only interested in existing, not living. After all the time she wasted on looking for him, she was going to wake him up with a lot less politeness this time. Just as she thought this, she found the source of her frustrations.

Sean was sound asleep with an alarm from his phone going off. The phone was blaring out a chime that anyone besides him could hear. Apparently, the American was such a heavy sleeper that he didn't even flinch from the noise. Sona had an eyebrow twitching in annoyance.

_"That's it! Enough is enough!"_ she thought in exasperation. She looked around to see that no one else was around. She placed an open hand in front of her and face it toward Sean. A small blue magic circle appeared in front of her hand and a geyser of water shot out of it and at the sleeping human's face.

Sean woke up with the feeling of water splashing onto him and soaking him. He tried to breathe, however the water didn't stop for a few seconds before it finally did. The human was gasping and coughing heavily, trying to take in the air that was robbed from him. He shook the water off his head like a wet dog. He looked up to see Sona with her arm out and a magic circle in front of her palm.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Sean angrily yelled at the Devil. The magic circle disappeared from Sona's palm and brought her arm back to her side.

"I believe that's my line. With as often as you sleep during school, I'm surprised you haven't been expelled." she replied as she fixed her glasses. Sean remembered to get his own glasses. He reached inside his backpack's dirt compartment and made a rag with the Reality Stone to dry the lenses. He then placed them back on his face.

"What time is it?" Sean asked. He looked around for his phone. He didn't understand why he didn't wake up when his alarm went off. The human found his phone, but unfortunately, it was water-logged from Sona's aquatic wake-up call.

"Son of a bitch!" the American cursed his luck. Reaching back into the dirt compartment, he pulled out a plastic baggy and dug up some more dirt and changed a couple more handfuls into rice. He poured them all into the baggy and dropped the phone in with the pieces of grain.

"This has gone on long enough! I was willing to let it slide last time, but no more! You're coming with me right now to the principal's office!" Sona ordered Sean as she turned to lead the way toward his punishment.

Sean was now getting worried about going to the principal's office. His constant naps outside of class were only tolerated because of his grades, but that would only work for so long. With the way things were looking for him, it was likely that Sean could be expelled.

_"Oh man! I can't get expelled! I can't imagine how hard it's going be to get into another school!"_ Sean panicked in his head.

_**"Sean, there may be a way for you to turn this situation to your favor."**_ Chronos said.

_"OK, OK! What is it?"_

_**"Are you sure? Because you may not like what you hear."**_

_"At this point, I don't think I've got much of a choice."_

Sona was walking toward the main school building to escort Sean to the principal's office. She may have been angry because of his lazy demeanor, but she couldn't help but feel disappointed with the human. He had the intelligence to truly excel in his academics, yet he chose to skip classes to sleep outside. It seemed like a waste of potential. But regrettably, there was only so much she could do for other students.

"Wait!"

Sona stopped when Sean called out to her. She turned to face him with narrowed eyes. Was he really trying to delay the inevitable?

"I have a proposition for you." Sona's eyes widened a bit in amazement. He was trying to make a deal with her? Her disappointment for the American only grew, trying to struggle against dealing with the result of his lackadaisical actions. But so did her curiosity, wondering what he could possibly offer her.

"You're not in any position to make any deals with me." the Devil stated with a no-nonsense look.

"I know that. But I'm going to make you an offer that you can't refuse."

"'Can't refuse'? That's quite a claim to make." Sona brought her hand up to her chin in a contemplative manner, thinking over her options. "Very well. What is this offer that I 'can't refuse'?"

"It's a challenge. I'll let you decide how we settle it. If I win, then you let me go. No principal's office, no punishment. You'll let me walk away, scot free."

Sona raised an eyebrow in interest. As the Student Council President, she should've refused right away and dragged him to the principal's office. But as a Devil, she was intrigued about the stakes of this challenge the American proposed.

"And what do I get if I win?" Sona asked Sean. The human closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he heard of this suggestion from the Grecian time god, he really didn't like it, just like the deity said. However, it was the only thing that could override Sona's duty and spark her Devil nature. He looked back into Sona's eyes with his most serious look.

"Then I'll join your peerage, no questions asked."

Sona's eyes went wide in shock. This human, the one who vehemently denied Rias's previous offers to join her peerage, would risk his own freedom to avoid the consequences of his careless napping?

"Why would you make such an offer? From what you told me, you always tried to steer clear of anything having to do with the supernatural world. You even rejected all of Rias's offers. So why would you take the chance of losing the freedom you hold so dear?"

Sean kept his stern gaze on Sona as he gave her his explanation.

"This isn't a decision that I made lightly. But let's be honest, Sona. There's no one here, teacher or student, that doesn't know about my outdoor sleeping habits. And with as long as I have kept them up, I wouldn't be surprised that when we get to the principal's office that I would be expelled." Sean stopped and sighed out his stress of the very thought of the difficulties that would be brought about by expulsion.

"Despite my lax manner, I do take my schoolwork seriously."

_**"Ha!"**_ Izanagi laughed at his host's words. Sean ignored him as he tried to make his point to Sona.

"I do want to have a normal human life. And that include getting an education and trying to go on about my days as a human. I don't want to give that up. But if I get expelled, it would be very hard for me to try and apply for another school. I could use my Infinity Gauntlet to bypass all the crap that I would have to deal with. But I don't plan on using it foolhardily. And besides, if you do win, you'll be able to stop my napping once and for all."

Sona was speechless as Sean finished his piece. What she heard from him was the unadulterated truth. He may have been a shiftless student, but his grades spoke for themselves. The logic of his argument was sound. She could stop him from sleeping if he became part of her peerage and it would be good to finally put an end to such nonsense. And the thought of someone with his power would be an excellent addition to her peerage.

"Very well. I accept your challenge. Please follow me, we'll settle this matter right now in the Student Council Room." the Devil agreed to the human's conditions as they made their way to the Council room.

**XXXXX**

The Devil and the human arrived at their destination. Sona, leading Sean, slid the door open to reveal a few other people that were already inside. A total of six girls and one guy.

The guy had short blond hair and grey eyes. He wore the boys' school uniform, but without the blazer and had his sleeves rolled up. He was talking to two of the girls: one with long twin brown ponytails with green eyes and one with white hair that reached down to her shoulders and blue-green eyes. The girls seem to be arguing between themselves while the guy was trying to calm them down.

A tall, tomboyish girl was looking over some papers. She had shoulder-length blue hair and matchings eyes. Another girl that also had shoulder-length hair but in reddish-brown with a single strand sticking out the top and brown eyes was handing her more papers, much to the bluenette's chagrin.

The last two girls were talking to each other. One was a slim girl with long brown hair that ended in twin short braids with matching eyes. And the other was woman wearing blue, semi-rimmed square glasses with long straight black hair that extended to her knees. Her eyes were heterochromatic: a violet left eye and a light brown right eye. She had the same kind of posture as Sona as well as her demeanor.

Each of these girls wore the standard girls' uniform. All of the occupants stopped what they were doing to see their President enter the room with Sean.

"Tsubaki, please clear the table and set up the chessboard." Sona said. The long black-haired girl nodded and did as she was told. The rest of the Council started to congregate to Sona's desk as Tsubaki was setting up the chessboard.

"Chess, huh?" Sean asked Sona. The Devil nodded in response.

"Yes. When you said that I could decide the challenge, I decided on a single game of chess."

"OK. That's fair enough."

The blond guy was snickering like he heard a funny joke.

"This guy actually challenged the President to a chess game? This should be hilarious."

"Saji." Hearing Sona's voice, Saji quickly shut his mouth as Sona turned back to Sean.

"While Tsubaki is setting up the board, allow me to introduce you to my peerage." Sona said to the American. The others looked in astonishment as their King had forgone the usual secrecy.

"Miss President, you're introducing us as your peerage to a human?!" the blond guy asked.

"Yes, Saji. He is aware of our race. But he has decided to keep our secret, considering that I already know about his Sacred Gear."

"Wait. You're telling us that this lazy bum actually has a Sacred Gear?!" Sean narrowed his eyes in irritation as Saji called him a lazy bum.

"Yes, he does. And you will do well to show proper manners. While he might be a little lazy, he is a guest." Saji didn't say another word as his King continued with the introductions.

"Now, are you aware of the positions in a Devil's peerage?" Sona asked the American.

"Yeah. Rias told me all about it during a fight we had with a Stray Devil."

"Very well then. I shall start with Saji. This is Saji Genshirou. He is my Pawn." Saji himself bowed in greetings, although he had a sour look on his face.

"The one with the brown ponytails is Ruruko Nimura, also a Pawn." the brunette bowed to Sean with a happy smile.

"The white-haired girl is Momo Hanakai, one of my Bishops." Momo had a closed-eyed gentle smile as she made her own bow. The bluenette and the reddish-brown haired girl walked over to Sean and Sona, standing side by side to each other.

"The one on the left is Tsubara Yura, my Rook, and on the right is Tomoe Meguri, my Knight." Tsubara gave a simple nod of acknowledgement while Tomoe gave a cheerful smile with a wave.

"The one talking to Tsubaki earlier is Reya Kusaka, my other Bishop alongside Momo." the braided brunette continued the pattern of bows with one of her own. Tsubaki just finished setting up the board and walked over to her King's side.

"And finally is my Queen, Tsubaki Shinra." Sona finished the sequence of intros while Tsubaki gave a small bow of her head to the human.

"It's nice to meet you all." Sean bowed in return. Sona and Tsubaki walked over to the King's side of the desk while Sean sat in a provided chair on the opposite side.

"Before we begin, let's restate the stakes. If you win, I shall turn a blind eye to your actions today." The Council was surprised that Sona would ever agree to such a condition. Sean nodded to confirm her end of the deal.

"And if you win, I'll join your peerage." The disbelief now doubled after hearing Sean's part. Saji was angry to hear the possibility of Sean joining their group. And with Sona's win-loss record when it came to chess, it was basically guaranteed.

"Please choose your side." Sona offered to Sean.

"Usually, the challenged take the white pieces."

"So you are familiar with the rules?" Sean gave his own nodding response.

"Yeah. I used to play this game with my mother back in America. We didn't play much, but enough that I know the basics."

Sona smiled at hearing that the American was at least aware of the rules. It made playing easier for her, not having to explain everything.

"Very well. I'll have white and you'll have black." Sean nodded in agreement and with the others of Sona's peerage spectating, the game had begun.

**XXXXX**

None of the members of the Student Council could believe what they were seeing. Not only was the game still going, but Sean was actually giving Sona a run for her money.

At the beginning, Sean had some difficulty trying to keeping up with Sona's foresight. He had already lost a few pieces after twenty moves. He even got placed in check just a few more after that.

But after a while, he was beginning to understand Sona's strategy. The Devil herself was surprised at some of the techniques he displayed. After starting his comeback, Sona had tried to advance one of her pawns two spaces from its starting position and it ended up right next to one of Sean's pawns. However, Sean managed to take the white pawn by making his own pawn's usual movement of capture. Only to pass it into the space behind it, after which, Sean took the pawn in question.

Saji tried to contest this move against the American, but Sona waved him off. She informed him that the move was legal. It was called _"en passant"_. This move could only be used on the very turn that the white pawn was moved next to the black pawn. Sona admonished herself for neglecting such a move. Normally, her opponents wouldn't think of using it. But it seemed that Sean wasn't the amateur he claimed to be.

Sona noticed that Sean's movements were getting more strategic with every turn. The King had to stay on her toes from then on. She then realized that one of Sean's pawns was about to be promoted. None of the pieces Sona had on the board could intercept the stray pawn before reaching the end, so she focused on trying to place the American in checkmate instead.

Sean moved his pawn to the farthest square and promoted his pawn to a queen. After that, Sona tried to place a knight in a position to take the newly promoted queen. However, Sean moved the piece over and placed Sona in check.

The Devil had started to figuratively sweat from the pressure she was under. She had never had to be so diligent against any of her previous chess opponents. Not even her former fiancé. When this happened, she tried to keep a straight face. But Tsubaki could see how the game was affecting her.

But Sona then started to relax as she found a perfect spot for her bishop to cut off Sean's King's escape. She had him now! All she needed was one more move and Sean would be joining her peerage!

"Checkmate."

With that one word, Sona's internal excitement was shattered. She couldn't believe what she had just heard and she quickly surveyed the board to confirm it. She saw her own King on her left side of the board, on a square at the edge. There were none of Sean's pieces near it, but she saw the queen that Sean just moved directly behind it by a few spaces. But then she realized her mistake. She failed to notice Sean's rook blocking the entire line of vertical squares right next to her King.

It was indeed checkmate.

None of the Student Council could make a sound. The absolute incredulity of the situation was staggering. Sona had never been beaten by anyone other than Rias. The King herself was slightly shaking in shock, refusing to believe what had happened in front of her own eyes.

Sean broke the silence by letting out a huge sigh of relief. He stretched out his arms and stood up from his chair.

"Whew! Man, that was intense! You're really good! I haven't played that serious in a long time!"

Sona snapped out of her stupor to see Sean standing with his arm sticking out to her, smiling at her in gratitude.

"That was a great game! We should play again some time!" Sona looked at the human with less surprise and shook his hand in good sportsmanship. After letting go of her hand, Sean turned around with his backpack over his shoulder and made his way to the door.

"Hey."

The whole Student Council looked toward Sean as he called out to them. Sean looked over his shoulder at Sona with his face showing some shame.

"For what it's worth, I am trying to cut back on my sleeping. And I promise to stop napping outside. I just wanted to let you know that." With that, Sean walked out of the door and closed it behind him.

Sona sat up straight on her chair and cleared her throat, gaining her peerage's attention.

"Alright, that's enough. Everyone, let's get back to work."

The whole Council dispersed themselves back to their original places and resumed doing their duties. Sona sat back down in her chair, taking off her glasses and rubbing her face. She couldn't believe that she lost a game of chess. Not because of losing, but because of what it meant if she lost to a man.

**XXXXX**

It was the end of the school day and Sean decided to check on Asia like he promised to Issei. He didn't hear much from him about the former nun, but what he did say made him worry about her. Sean may not have any experience with dealing with these kinds of situations, but he figured that he should at least try to help her. He may not like other people, but he wasn't an asshole.

On the way, the American thought back to his chess game with Sona. He was so relieved that he managed to pull off a victory. He was so close to losing that he thought he would've been expelled on the spot. But now, he didn't have to worry about any of that anytime soon.

_"Man, I am so glad that I have the Mind Stone!"_ Sean thought with relief.

_**"Indeed. With the passive ability of enhanced intelligence, you were able to defeat her. Though, I have to say, she was a very skilled opponent for it to be that close."**_ Thoth agreed.

_"Tell me about it. Still, maybe I could play against her again. You know, without sacrificing my freedom and humanity."_

_**"I told you that you wouldn't like the stakes. It was the only thing that entice her enough to even agree to the challenge. In any case, it doesn't matter now. You're free and in the clear."**_ Chronos said, hearing the deadpan tone of his host.

_**"I wouldn't say that, Chronos."**_ Heimdall spoke in a low and foreboding inflection. Sean immediately gulped at hearing the Norse god's voice, remembering what he said about oversleeping.

_**"So you do remember what I said. Good. But don't worry, I'll let you keep your promise of talking with Asia before I make you literally run yourself into the ground."**_ The apprehension only increased as Sean could feel his body already aching from the running he would have to do later.

The American arrived at the old schoolhouse and went inside to find Asia. He walked through the place, recalling the path he took when he first met the entire ORC members. As he was walking, he came across an unusual door at the end of a seperate hallway. Not only the door, but the entire wall was covered in yellow 'Keep Out' tape. Sean looked at it with curiosity and started to approach it.

_**"Don't, Sean."**_ Morrigan suddenly told him. The human stopped in his tracks after hearing the goddess.

_"What is it, Morrigan?"_

_**"Don't go near that door. I can sense a seal that prevents anyone from entering it."**_

_"Seriously? What could Rias have that she needed to seal it inside a room?"_

_**"I'm not sure. But it would be better to be more cautious than curious."**_

Sean chose to heed Morrigan's words and went back to his business. Though in the back of his mind, he still wanted to know what was behind that door. If whatever that was inside was really so dangerous that it had to be sealed off, then maybe it was better to just leave it alone.

On the way, he saw Asia walking in the same direction ahead of him. She was wearing the Kuoh girls' uniform as opposed to her usual nun robes.

"Hey, Asia!" Sean called out to the new Devil. Asia turned around to see the human walking towards her.

"Oh, Harris! It's nice to see you again!" she returned the greeting with her sweet smile.

"So you're on your way to see Rias?" Asia nodded in response.

"Yes, she said that she needed to tell me about my living arrangements and my school schedule."

"Well, that explains the uniform." Asia just smiled as she joined Sean, walking toward the clubroom at a leisurely pace.

The walk after that was silent. Neither one of them tried to make any conversation. Sean then remembered about what Issei said earlier. About how Asia was having trouble adjusting to her new life as a Devil.

"Asia, how have you been since being reincarnated?"

The Bishop had a saddened expression, thinking about all the changes that she has gone through in a single day. She had become the antithesis of her very beliefs. A Devil. She didn't know what to think about her situation.

"I don't know, to be honest. I'm grateful that I'm alive, but I'm a Devil now. I can't help but wonder if God is angry with me."

Sean expected this kind of response. Even if Asia was kind about Issei being a Devil, it was a far cry from actually being a Devil. It wasn't something that someone could just get used to in a single night.

"Asia, Issei told me about how your life was at the church and what happened that got you excommunicated. I'll be honest, when you died, I tried to stop Rias from bringing you back because I knew that a devout person like you couldn't just simply accept everything that was suddenly thrusted upon you. I didn't want you to die, but I didn't want you to suffer."

Asia was surprised that Sean would let her die because of the possibility that she wouldn't accept the life she would have. But she also felt touched that he would be thoughtful enough to consider her faith.

"But Issei said that he would help you try to accept what you became so you could have the friends that you didn't have as a human. I then decided to let Rias resurrect you. After seeing you being revived, I figured that it would be the best thing that could happen to you. I won't pretend to know what you've been through, but I can give you a piece of advice that might help you: focus on the positives. Don't think about what you've lost; think about what you still have. You still have your life, you seem to have have some semblance of your faith considering that you're now a Devil. But most of all, you now have the chance to make new friends."

Asia listened to every word that Sean said to her. She then thought about Issei and everything he did for her when she was human. He was the first friend that she ever made and he did everything he could to save her. She could never blame him for not saving her as a human, but she was grateful that he could still be her friend as a Devil.

"Yes. I guess I am still blessed in some ways. Even if I am a Devil now, I'm still so happy that I can make so many more friends like Issei." Sean smiled at the Devil, happy that she could find it in herself to continue on.

"And Harris, I never got to tell this before. Thank you so much for helping Issei try to save me. He told me that you agreed to help him." Asia bowed to show her gratitude to the American.

"It's OK. I'm just glad that everything worked out. Well, mostly anyway. And don't worry, I'll help you through this too."

Asia smiled at Sean's kindness. "Thank you very much! Oh, we're here!"

Sean looked ahead of him to see that they had reached the clubroom doors. He could faintly hear Rias talking to Issei about something, but he couldn't make out what it was. Sean reached for the doorknob and opened it. Sean went in first with Asia following right behind him. Only to see that Rias was kissing Issei's forehead.

"Just a little spell to strengthen your stamina." Rias explained her affectionate action.

"Sweetness! I've always wanted pornstar stamina!" Issei exclaimed with enthusiasm. Rias looked behind Issei and noticed that Sean and Asia had entered the room.

"You'll need your strength to follow my orders. And I'm going to have to stop coddling you or our newest member will get jealous." The King told him with a wink.

"Jealous?"

"Um, what's going on?" Asia asked, making Issei turn to her.

"We're just talking!" Issei hastily explained.

"Must have been some kind of talk." Sean quipped.

"That's how it always starts. It's OK, I know that she's prettier than me. And she'll probably do things that I won't, so it makes sense that you like her more." Asia said, depressed.

"OH! I SHOULDN'T SAY THINGS LIKE THAT! I SWEAR, I'M NOT JEALOUS! I'M JUST INSECURE!" she quickly shouted while frantically shaking her head.

_**"It might be a hint of both."**_ Morrigan said inside of Sean's head.

_"It's kind of funny to see something like this. Hehehe."_ the host thought with a chuckle.

_**"Don't think that! The poor dear feels like she's going to lose her chance to be with someone she cares about and you just laugh?"**_

_**"It **_**is **_**pretty obvious that she holds great feelings for the boy. I don't need to read her mind for that."**_ Thoth joined in on the conversation.

Asia held her hands in a prayer. "Dear Lord, please forgive my sins of lust and enAHH!" she cried out during her prayer of forgiveness and grabbed her head in pain and crouched to the ground. Sean and Issei both looked to her in concern.

"Asia, Are you OK?" The Devil asked her.

"It felt like a knife just ran through my head!" Asia cried out, still feeling the pain stab into her brain.

"God's not very receptive to the prayers of demons." Rias explained to the former nun.

Asia stood up with a sad look on her face. "I forgot. He's probably angry that I became a Devil. But I'll go on. After all, Issei and I will be together forever now!" she said with her smile returning.

"Wow, Asia. You're really OK with being a Devil now?" Issei asked her.

"Well, I wasn't at first and I really appreciate you trying to help me! But in the back of my mind, I still felt bad about not being able to be a nun anymore. Then I found Sean walking down here and he told me that I should look for the positives in all of this. Like being with you, Issei!"

The Devil in question blushed and laughed a bit from hearing Asia say something like that to him and he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Speaking of which, why are you here, Harris? Changed your mind about joining my peerage?" Rias asked the human. Sean scoffed at the mention of her offers.

"Don't flatter yourself. I came here to check on Asia. See if she was adjusting well to her situation." Rias smiled at the concern he had for her new Bishop.

"Well, that's sweet of you."

"Anyway, Asia. About that outfit you've got on." Issei steered the conversation toward the blonde's new attire.

"What do you think?" Asia asked with a twirl to show her uniform to her friend.

"It's nice, but does that mean you're going to our school now?"

"It does." Rias confirmed." "My father's on the school board, so getting her enrolled here as a transfer student wasn't difficult."

"Well, that's cool. Never knew that."

The door behind Rias and Issei opened up with Kiba and Koneko walking through it.

"Good afternoon, everyone." Kiba greeted the occupants.

"I'm almost glad to see that you're not dead." Koneko said to Issei.

"Hey, Kiba. Koneko." Sean acknowledged the other Devil entering the room.

"Hey." Koneko greeted the human with her usual tone.

"Oh, Harris. I didn't think you'd actually be here. Good to see you!" Kiba also greeted, surprised that Sean would be in the ORC house.

"Yeah. Well, I just wanted to check on Asia. See if she's alright considering everything that's happened to her recently."

Another door opened before the group to show Akeno pushing a cart carrying a cake with a tea set in the lower rack.

"Oh perfect, you're all here! I brought cake and tea so we could officially welcome our new member!" Akeno told everyone in the room with a closed-eyed smile.

Everyone looked at the cake to see that it was delicious-looking chocolate cake with sliced strawberries decorated around it and with a tiny plague that said 'Welcome Asia Argento' on top.

"Oh Harris! I didn't see you there! Did you happen to agree to Rias' offer?" Akeno asked the human.

"No. That answer still hasn't changed." Sean told the ravenette Devil. Akeno sighed a little, hearing that he wouldn't join them. After seeing him literally rip Dohanseek's heart out, she couldn't stop thinking about how ruthless he was. Any time she thought of that, she got a faint blush and wondered what it would be like if he became a Devil.

"Aw, that's too bad. I wouldn't mind having you in our little group. Fufufu~." Akeno giggled a teasing tone in her voice. Sean looked at her strangely, wondering if she was messing with him.

"Anyway, Harris, why don't you join us? It's the least we could do after everything you've done for us." Rias offered to the human.

_**"Don't even think about it, Sean. You're still running all over town after this."**_ Heimdall told him.

_**"Oh, hush Heimdall! You go on ahead, Sean. It's only cake and tea. And besides, you'll be able to talk to Akeno more~."**_ Morrigan argued, both dismissing Heimdall and teasing her host.

Sean said nothing as he considered his options. He looked toward the Devils as they started having the spread that was laid out before them, eating cake and drinking tea. They all seemed happy celebrating their newest member of Rias's peerage. Asia was sitting next to Issei and were talking with each other, smiling all the while. As he kept on looking at the joyful get-together, he felt like he didn't belong there. That he was intruding on a private party.

"That's OK. I need to get back home anyway." Sean waved off the Devil and turned to take his leave.

"Very well. Then I guess we'll see you around." Rias said to the human. Sean threw his hand over his shoulder in a lazy wave and left the room.

The American walked out of the old schoolhouse and prepared himself for exercise hell with Heimdall. He started stretching out his legs so he wouldn't pull any muscles along the way, otherwise Heimdall would've made him hop or crawl the rest of the way.

_**"Sean, why didn't you stay with them?"**_ Morrigan suddenly asked, disappointed in her host's previous decision.

_"I don't belong there. I felt like I was intruding in on their affairs. Besides, you know that I don't want anything to do with the supernatural world."_

_**"But that shouldn't stop you from making friends. Even if they are Devils."**_ Sean remained silent as he finished his pre-running stretches.

_"Heimdall, I'm ready."_

_**"I commend you for not trying to escape your punishment."**_ the Norse god said to Sean with pride in his voice.

_"That's because if I tried to, you'd just make me spar with you and have Thoth make me feel all the pain in the morning."_

_**"You're damn right I would! Now, start running!" **_At that, Sean started to run forward and didn't stop for anything.

**XXXXX**

Night had fallen on Kuoh as Sean finally received the call from Heimdall to stop. And he couldn't be any more relieved to hear it. He could see his apartment in the distance; he almost cried knowing that his bed was nearby, ready for Sean to rest his tired body.

His legs felt numb as he struggled to climb up the stairs to get to his home. Sean had reached his apartment door. He took his keys out from his pocket, found his apartment key, stuck it in the doorknob and turned it to unlock the door.

The door opened wide and revealed...

It was completely empty.

There was nothing anywhere. No TV, no table, no couches, not even the fridge! Sean's eyes were wide as he took in his surroundings. The whole place looked like before he moved in a few years ago. He walked around, the shock still in his face, as he tried to rationalize what had happened.

He got robbed, but usually people don't take every single thing in your house. That would take hours to do and a whole lot of people would notice, especially in broad daylight. Sean went to his room and found that even his bed was gone. He turned and his shock turned into rage.

Why? Because some mother_fucker_ took all of his comics and manga!

"Harris?" a voice called out from behind him.

"WHAT?!" the American screamed out to the source and saw that Morisawa was standing in the living room. Morisawa flinched back at the volume of his outrage.

"Easy, Harris! It's me!" Sean started to take deeper breaths to try and relax so he could talk to Morisawa properly. A minute or two later, Sean finally calmed down and lower his voice.

"Sorry, Morisawa. But... just look at this!" Sean spread his arms to show his neighbor his desolate abode.

"I know. That's why I came in here when I heard you were home."

"What? You knew about this and didn't bother to tell me?"

"I tried calling you, but you never picked up." Sean then remembered that his phone was soaked by Sona due to his oversleeping the alarm at school.

"Apparently, your guardian came down here and said that he was going to move your stuff into your new home."

Sean stopped at the mentioning of a guardian. He didn't have a guardian in Japan. And he knew that his father would never be able to afford to come down here just to bring him back to the States. Sean wanted to know more about this "guardian", so he decided to roll with it.

"OK, did he say where?"

"No. But he did tell me to give you this letter when you got home." Morisawa pulled out a letter from his pants pocket and gave it to Sean.

Sean opened the letter and took out the contents of it. It was a simple note with a key inside. The note told him the address and it had a short message underneath it.

_"We need to talk."_

Sean couldn't begin to imagine who would want to talk to him. He did think that Rias might have been behind this, but she could've just told him while he was at the ORC. He took the key in his hand and put it in his own pocket and tucked the note back into the envelope and into his backpack.

"Thanks, Morisawa. I guess I'll see you around." Sean said as he walked outside with Morisawa following him.

"Sure! Don't forget to come back anytime! Maybe we'll play some online multiplayer when you get settled into your new place." Morisawa told his American friend with a farewell wave.

Sean smiled at his ex-neighbor and returned the wave with one of his own. He knew of the address in the note and sighed when realized that it was a ways away. His expression got serious as he began to wonder who could've sent the note and took all of his belongings.

_"You guys have any idea who it could be?"_

_**"No idea. But you shouldn't take any chances." **_Heimdall told Sean.

_**"I agree, Sean. Don't let your guard down for a second."**_ Morrigan shared her own thoughts, feeling her protective instincts kicking in.

Sean had finally arrived to the address, which was inside a suburban area, and he found what looked like a hotel. It was a five-story building that stood over the normal houses beside it. Sean looked over the exterior with a raised eyebrow of confusion.

_"Do any of you guys remember anything like this being here before?"_

_**"I know I haven't."**_ Thoth said.

_"Why would something like this even be here? And you think that everyone around here would notice a giant building like this being here."_

_**"Well, there's no point standing here and wondering about how this place came to be. Go inside."**_ Chronos told Sean.

The American nodded at the time deity's reasoning. He approached the door and turned the doorknob to find out that it wouldn't turn. He then remembered the key in his pocket and pushed it into the keyhole. He turned it and tried turning the doorknob again. It was now unlocked and he entered the building.

To say it was extravagant would be an understatement. The area inside was huge and empty with a large staircase on the other side of the room. Sean marveled at the size while he made his way toward an opening on the left side that led to the living room. As he got closer, he could hear voices coming from there.

He entered the room to see what looked like the living room. It was another huge area with a high ceiling, a pair of long, accommodating couches that surrounded a big table in the center, and a large flat screen TV was on. He also noticed that an empty glass with ice cubes was sitting on the table. Which meant that someone was in here watching TV and most likely still somewhere in here.

Sean summoned the Infinity Gauntlet on his left arm as he left the room to search for whoever else was here. He was on edge at who it could possibly be in here with him. But whoever it may be, Sean would be ready to defend himself if he had to.

He heard some clinking noises coming from the opposite end of the main hallway. Sean snuck over to the side of the opening it came from and put his back to the wall beside it. He peered inside to see a kitchen with the fridge wide open and someone standing in front of it. The silhouette of that person's physique was that of a tall male with an average build.

_"Morrigan, what are we dealing with here?"_ Sean thought to the Power Stone occupant.

_**"It seems that this person is a Fallen Angel. And from the feel of him, he must be extremely powerful. You better be careful, Sean."**_

_"In that case, I need you to hide my power from this guy. I don't want to take any chances."_

_**"Right."**_ the Celtic goddess replied.

The Power Stone glowed as he started to sneak behind the figure. His power was now virtually nonexistent thanks to Morrigan concealing it. As he crept closer to the intruder, the man in front of him didn't seem to notice Sean yet. He just kept on helping himself to the fridge. Sean raised his arms to place the man in a headlock.

"Don't even think about it."

Sean's eyes widened as the man already knew of his intentions. The figure himself closed the fridge door and the silhouette turned into a man with black hair with golden bangs and a black goatee. He wore a V-neck maroon long-coat with a wide-open, high-collar that opens up at the hem. The long coat had two black belts around the waist and four black bands on each of his arms. Two at the wrists and two near each of his elbows. His slacks were grey and he wore brown shoes.

Sean immediately backed away from the man and kept his guard up. But the strange man held his free hand up while the other one held a bottle of scotch.

"Relax. Didn't you get my note? I said I wanted to talk, not fight." he said in a calming tone.

Sean narrowed his eyes in suspicion while the Fallen Angel past him by and went toward the living room. The man turned back to Sean.

"Well, are you coming? Can't talk if you're not in the same room as me." he told Sean.

Sean stared at the man with apprehension as he left the kitchen. If this guy was really as powerful as Morrigan told him, he probably would have killed him when he tried to sneak up on him. He was actually hesitant to even be anywhere near this guy.

_**"Well, what are you waiting for?"**_ Izanagi asked Sean.

_"I don't know about this. I mean, if he could sense me even after I concealed my power, then this isn't someone I want to be around."_

_**"You shouldn't show fear to anyone, Sean. Whether they be friend or foe."**_ Heimdall told him.

Sean chose to bite the bullet and went toward the stranger's direction, into the living room. The Fallen Angel was sitting on one of the couches, refilling his glass with the scotch he got from the fridge. He saw Sean enter the room and motioned his hand to the human.

"Go ahead, take a seat." he said.

Sean did take a seat on the couch opposite of the Fallen Angel. The man took a drink of his scotch while Sean just kept looking at him. The atmosphere for Sean was getting heavier by the second. He didn't feel this tense when he fought against the other Fallen Angels he met. They weren't very powerful. Thoth taught Sean about how members of the Three Factions have a certain amount of wings that corresponds with how much power they have. If what happened in the kitchen was any indication, then this guy must be pretty strong.

The Fallen Angel finished his drink and set his glass down on the table. He looked at Sean who seemed to be getting anxious. He let out of small sigh and leaned back on the couch.

"Geez, kid. I told you to relax. I'm not here to hurt ya. I just wanted to meet the guy who chose to spare a couple of my fellow Fallen Angels." the man tried to calm the human down. However, his words didn't quell Sean's nerves in the slightest.

"Well, forgive me, but I haven't exactly had the best track record when it comes to talking with Fallen Angels." Sean told the Fallen.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. And I do apologize for them. Also, they also told me that you're the one who killed Dohnaseek." The American's eyes narrowed at the mention of Dohnaseek.

"Yeah, I am. He threatened me and killed an innocent nun for her Sacred Gear." Sean's thoughts turned dark at remembering Dohnaseek and how it felt to literally rip out his beating heart. He only wished he could've savored it more, but that bastard just flipped a switch with him.

"Yes. It's unfortunate that sometimes people turn against their own. I assume that this nun is with the Devils now?" Sean got suspicious of the Fallen, wondering how he would know about Asia.

"Yeah, she is." Sean decided to humor him, see what he would say about the subject.

"Oh well, I was hoping I would be able to examine Twilight Healing. But I guess that would be something for another time."

Sean's mind clicked when the Fallen Angel mentioned that he wanted to examine Asia's Twilight Healing. Then he remembered all the things he heard about the person that wanted to do so from Raynare and the voice from Dohnaseek's memories. Looking back toward the Fallen Angel, it all fell into place.

"You." The Fallen Angel was snapped out of his thoughts as he heard Sean call out to him.

"You're Azazel, aren't you?" Sean asked him.

The Fallen Angel smiled at the human, impressed that he was able to determine his identity. He stood up from his seat and unfurled twelve vantablack wings from his back. It was as if his wings were made out of darkness itself.

"You're pretty clever, aren't you? Yes, I am Azazel, Governor General of the Fallen Angels and leader of the Grigori." Azazel formally introduced himself to Sean.

Sean himself was in awe that he was in the presence of the boss of the Fallen Angels. He never thought that anyone high up in any of the Three Factions would actively seek him out. Sean felt honored and a little frightened.

"So you wanted to talk? Well, what did you want to talk about?" Sean asked Azazel. Azazel retracted his wings back into his body and sat back down on the couch.

"Like I said, I want to meet the human that spared a couple of Fallen Angels." he said as he filled his glass once again with scotch. He stopped pouring and looked at Sean with a small glare. "And why you would kill one of them."

Sean kept his cool, resisting the urge to flinch at the look that the Fallen leader gave him. He remembered Heimdall's words to him earlier about not showing fear. Sean closed his eyes and took a calming breath before speaking again.

"I already explained why I killed Dohnaseek. He threatened me and he killed Asia just to take her Sacred Gear."

Azazel kept his eyes on the human as he tried to search for any deception in Sean's eyes and voice.

"Yes, you did say that. However, that only explains why you killed Dohnaseek. But not why you chose to spare Raynare, Kalawarner, and Mittelt. Especially since they all tried to kill you, just like Dohnaseek did."

Sean was silent as he recalled his reasons for saving the three Fallen women. They did try to kill him on separate occasions. Nobody would blame him if he let them die. But given the alternatives, he felt like they didn't deserve what they would've had coming to them if he did.

"It's because that they were being used. I know that they've tried to kill me, but that was always a chance of that happening when dealing with the supernatural because of what I have. I've accepted that. But I also know that the real villain, so to speak, was just manipulating them for his own purposes. They didn't deserve to die because of someone using them. Plus, if they did survive and escaped with their lives, then they would've dealt with a fate worse than death." Sean explained his motives with the whole truth.

The room went silent after Sean finished his elucidation. Azazel smiled after hearing the human's exposition. He then let out a small snicker that only grew into full-blown laughter. He slapped his knee as he did so as if he heard the funniest joke of his life. Sean felt a little put off from the sudden change in Azazel's demeanor.

"HAHAHA! Whew! I like that answer, kid! You're alright!" Azazel said with a smile on his face.

Sean only became more confused after what Azazel had just said.

"Wait. I admitted to killing a Fallen Angel and you just laugh about it?"

"Not exactly. Well, how much do you know about the Great War of the Three Factions?"

"Only that it was a war that was fought between Angels, Fallen Angels, and Devils. And right now, you're all in a ceasefire."

"Yeah, that's the short version. We were the first to pull out of the war. It was because that our population became the lowest out of the Three Factions. Seeing this, I ordered all of our troops to stop fighting. We may not be fighting the war now, but there's a few of us that were outraged that I stopped our assault; Dohnaseek being one of them. After our part in the war ended, I didn't want any more of us to die. Otherwise, we would become extinct." Azazel told the human as he took a drink from his glass.

Sean could understand what he was saying. He was basically looking out for his own kind. Plus, with the Mind Stone, he could confirm the sincerity of his claims.

"You poking around in my head?" Azazel questioned, feeling the human probing his mind. Sean snapped from his thoughts and looked down in shame.

"Sorry. I was taught that it was rude to read someone's thoughts. But I had to make sure that you were telling the truth."

"Ah, don't worry about it, kid."

"Right, I never introduced myself. My name is Sean Harris." the human introduced himself as he stuck his hand out.

"Nice to meet you, Sean." Azazel replied, grabbing Sean's hand with his own and shaking it. "Now, from what Raynare, Kalawarner, Mittelt have told me, you happen to have a Sacred Gear."

Sean suddenly got defensive as he moved his left arm behind his back. Azazel simply smiled as he tried to assuage his worries.

"It's alright. I simply want to see it." the Fallen leader assured Sean.

Sean was still a little unwilling to let anyone see the Infinity Gauntlet. The gods inside said that the allure of infinite power would be too much for most to resist and would stop at nothing to obtain it.

_"What do you guys think?"_ Sean asked the deities.

_**"Well, he has been upfront with you this whole time. And remember what the voice from Dohnaseek's memories said about Azazel? It said that he was interested in Sacred Gears in general, not just yours."**_ Thoth reasoned.

_**"Normally, I would be against such an action. However, you're not at the level of taking on the Governor General of the Fallen Angels."**_ Heimdall put forth.

_**"I actually knew him from before Izanami and I became the Reality Stone. He's alright."**_ Izanagi gave his opinion.

_"Really, Izanagi? You're sure?"_

_**"Yeah, he's OK. We hung out sometimes during the ceasefires in the Great War."**_

_**"I agree with Izanagi. I don't sense any malevolent intentions from him."** _Yama concurred with the Shinto god.

_"Morrigan, Izanami, either of you going to weigh in here?"_

_**"I never really liked Azazel, but he is a good man. So I'll allow it."**_ Izanami said.

_"Morrigan, how about you?"_

The Celtic goddess remained silent as her host tried to ask for her opinion. Sean was starting to get a little worried about her silence.

_"Morrigan?"_ The war divinity was taken out of her thoughts as she heard Sean.

_**"Yes?"**_ Morrigan finally answered her host's call.

_"Do you think I should trust Azazel?"_

_**"Oh, yes. Yes, you can."** _Sean was curious about Morrigan's unusual absentmindedness, but decided to ask her about it later as he turned his attention back to Azazel.

"Alright." Sean showed his left arm, however with a few reservations.

The human's arm suddenly brought out the Infinity Gauntlet. The Fallen Angel's eyes went wide as he saw the gilded Sacred Gear. He raised his hand to touch it.

"Oh shit! I didn't think it actually existed!" Azazel breathed out with reverence.

"Um... you gonna be OK? Because you're starting to creep me out." Sean told him with growing unease at the Fallen leader's behavior.

"Sorry about that. It's just that... this is a legendary Sacred Gear. It's mostly regarded as a myth. But for those that believe in it, the Infinity Gauntlet is said to be more powerful than even the Longinus-class Sacred Gears. It's also the only Sacred Gear that has more than one spirit in it. And not just any spirits, but the souls of gods."

"Well, it's true. There are seven of them in here. Five gods and two goddesses." Sean clarified.

"Seven? But there are six Stones on there." Azazel asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yeah, there are two of them in one Stone." Sean explained.

"Well, that is something. Anyway, we can talk about this another time. Right now, there's a favor I need your help with."

"What is it?"

"Remember I said that I didn't want more Fallen Angels to die?"

"Yeah..."

"You can all come in now." Azazel called out.

Soon after, Sean looked over to the entrance to the living room and was shocked to see Raynare, Kalawarner, and Mittelt walk inside. Sean kept his composure and his eyes on the murderous Fallen Angels.

Raynare didn't have the look of superiority that she had when Sean fought her. Now, it looked like she was completely subservient. Kalawarner met Sean's leer with her own. She made it clear to him that she still was skeptical of his words. Mittelt tried to keep it together being in the same room as Sean. The feeling of fear had mentally scarred the petite blond Fallen Angel when she first met the human.

"Why are they here?" Sean asked Azazel, not wanting to be near his attempted murderers.

"These three are under probation. And they need a place to stay where we can keep an eye on them until further notice."

"You expect me to do that?!"

"I don't expect you to do anything. I'm only asking that you look after them until their probation is up. Then I'll take them off your hands. It's part of the reason why I moved all your stuff into this house. Think of it as a thank you gift for saving them."

"I saved them so I didn't have to deal with them anymore. And speaking of that, what am I supposed to do when the Devils find out about them living here?" The Fallen women glared at Sean after hearing his statement.

"Well, I was hoping that you would be able to handle that situation." Azazel said in a lackadaisical tone.

Sean soon got frustrated. He took of his glasses with one hand and started to rub his face with the other to try and calm himself down. He couldn't believe that this guy was the Fallen Angel's leader. He was being totally irresponsible. Sean put his glasses back on and brought his mind back into the conversation.

"Look, I appreciate the new house. But I'm sorry, I just don't feel comfortable living with three people that tried to kill me." Sean declined.

"How dare you turn down Lord Azazel's generosity!" Raynare shouted at Sean.

"Raynare!" Azazel raised his voice at his admirer. Raynare went silent hearing her Lord's tone.

"I understand. But if you don't take them, they'll be executed." Sean's eyes went wide as he heard Azazel.

"Executed?" Azazel sadly sighed at Sean's surprise.

"Yes. That is the normal sentence when found guilty of treason in the Three Factions. Or falling if you're an Angel."

"But they were tricked into doing that."

"I know. However, no matter the circumstances, treason is treason. The only reason that there still alive is because I managed to convince them of this probation idea. It was met with skepticism, but they decided to trust me with this."

Sean slumped in his chair as he realized the full gravity of the situation. He couldn't believe that the fates of the Raynare, Kalawarner, and Mittelt were once again in his hands. He still wasn't entirely comfortable being in the same place as them, but then he remembered all the things he knew about them.

They were all tricked into following Dohnaseek into killing him and Issei while stealing Asia's Twilight Healing. Yama told him that Kalawarner was only aggressive with him because of Dohnaseek. Dohnaseek said that Raynare admired Azazel so much that she would believe anything he said if he said it was Azazel's words. And while he didn't know much about Mittelt, from seeing her behavior around Raynare, she seemed to have a sisterly relationship with the ravenette.

As much as he didn't like it, he didn't have much of a choice when he thought about it.

"OK, they can stay." Sean withdrew his opposition to the idea. Azazel smiled as he got off the couch and patted Sean's shoulder in gratitude.

"Thank you for this. I didn't mean to guilt-trip you into doing this, but I really do appreciate this." Azazel walked over to the Fallen women while they bowed their heads in respect.

"Alright, you three. Until further notice, he is going to be looking after you all. I'll check in around here from time to time for assessments of your behavior." Azazel told them.

"Yes, Lord Azazel." they said in unison. Azazel nodded and started to leave. He stopped at the entrance to the hallway and looked over at Sean.

"It might be uncomfortable for you, but look on the bright side." he said to Sean as the human looked at him.

"What's that?"

"You get to be alone with a pair of beautiful women. Well, and a cute girl, if you're into that sorta thing. And who knows? Maybe you'll be able to move past this and make your own little harem."

Sean was surprised at what the Fallen leader said to him. A harem? That was more of Issei's thing than Sean's. He couldn't even imagine him having a harem.

"What?!" Azazel just laughed in response to Sean's shock.

"That tends to happen with men with power. I know I've had quite a few harems in my lifetime." he said to Sean with a goofy smile.

Sean was dumbfounded by Azazel. He then groaned at the realization that someone like him was basically the Fallen Angel version of Issei. He was starting to get a headache from this and got off of his seat and proceed to go to bed.

Before that, he stopped in front of the Fallen women. They all stared at each other and the air was getting awkward. It was just yesterday that they were trying to kill Sean. And now, they were supposed to live with him until Azazel said otherwise.

"Look, I know that you three don't want to be here. And to be honest, I don't like the idea of you all being here. But we could at least try to get along until your probation passes. That way, we can all go back to our own lives."

"Fine. You're right about one thing: I don't want to be here. But if it means never being around you again, I guess I can suck it up until we get to leave." Kalawarner said.

"Kala, don't say things like that! He'll tell Lord Azazel and we might get punished!" Raynare tried to placate her friend.

"What? He understands that I don't want to be here. Besides, we don't have a choice if we want to live. And don't call me 'Kala' in front of him!" Kalawarner chided Raynare.

Mittelt said nothing as she stayed by Raynare's side. She felt like being caught between a rock and a hard place. She could either stay here with the very human she feared and live, or she could accept her execution. But as long as she had Raynare, she could find the courage to be around the terrifying human.

Sean clapped his hands and caught the trio's attention. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm going to bed." He then left the trio in the living room as he made his way up the stairs.

_**"It was great seeing Azazel again! Glad to see that he hasn't changed!"** _Izanagi happily said.

_**"Yeah? Well, just know that you're not going anywhere with him anymore."**_ Izanami retorted.

_**"Don't remind me. Anyway, how great is this, Sean? You got two hotties living with you now!"**_

_"Are you kidding me, Izanagi?! You're talking about the same women that tried to kill me just yesterday! How is this great?!"_

_**"Don't worry, Sean. They won't get anywhere near you. Not if I have anything to say about it."**_ Morrigan assured him.

_"Thanks, Morrigan. Hey, is everything alright with you? You were unusually quiet when I was talking to Azazel."_

_**"Oh, it was nothing. Don't worry about it."**_

_**"Anyway, you should get to bed. You do have school in the morning."**_ Heimdall reminded him.

_"Yeah, I got that. I just hope that my comics and manga are in my room where they should be."_

_**"Even if Azazel was showing gratitude for saving some Fallen Angels, the size of this place is really unnecessary."**_ Thoth critiqued Sean's new home.

_"Tell me about it."_

But then he stopped as he realized that he didn't ask Azazel the one thing he needed to know.

_"Where the hell is my room?!"_

**Holy Crap! That was the longest chapter yet! I was a bit unsure if I should've ended it when Azazel introduced himself to Sean, but I decided "Fuck it!".**

**Anyway, I have an update on Sean's Black Order. Instead of using characters in DxD, I've now decided to use characters from other anime! This is why I thanked you, GunBlade2019! Moving on, I've already chosen some people from different anime. And this is the most crucial rule!**

**ONLY ONE CHARACTER PER ANIME!**

**That's it! No bringing in groups or armies or anything like that! Just one and done!**

**Alright! I'm eagerly waiting for your reviews and don't be afraid to send some feedback! It's how I get better. And it's through all of you that I hope that this story will only get better in the future!**

**As always, Follow/Fav/Review!**

**See you all next time!**


	10. Chapter 10: Peace and Sports

**Hey everybody! I know, it's been a while and I'm certain that you're all just overwhelmed with emotion. But I have a reason for that and not all of it is good. A few weeks ago, I got a second job. But just recently, I was let go from my first job. It sucks, but I'm working on finding another one so I can get enough my to get some things I need IRL.**

**Now let's get to the reviews!**

**MasterOfDragonsGod: Yeah, I get that. Keep in mind that this is only the beginning of the story. I promise that Sean's not going to be one of those whiny bitches that you see in some other fanfics.**

**TheBlindSalmon: That's not exactly where I was going with that. I know that it is a condition. But when Sean finds out, that's how he would take it.**

**Cboylan: Oh yeah. I haven't seen Naruto in a long time, so I didn't noticed. Thanks!**

**Vizard Masky: Well, they'll get some time with each other. And things will get hectic when Serafall finds out. The sleeping habits will be there, just not as frequent. Yeah, they will definitely be thorns in Sean's side. Ohohoho! I've got just the thing for Riser! Don't you worry about that! It will be a long road ahead for Sean and Kalawarner.**

**Messiah of authors: That will come around soon enough.**

**Kushmeister420: Well, I couldn't really find a way to exclude Issei. Doing that, I would also have to exclude Vali since their rivalry is kind of a key component in the story. Thanks!**

**GunBlade2019: Yeah. I figured Azazel would want to keep as many of his Fallen brethren alive as possible. Well, they're not going to be happy. I can tell you that much.**

**VirusChris: Well, I'm glad you stuck around for the story! Time travel never seemed to be a confusing subject for me. I'll think of something like that. Well, from what I could tell, it's a little hard for me to pinpoint Azazel's personality beyond his pervertedness. So, I went to the wiki to see his personality. It won't be that many. Maybe five or six characters. I think that some of the characters already in DxD will have their own reasons for messing with Sean. Hope you'll keep reading!**

**OnetimeMuffin, nikthemarine: See the notice at the end of the chapter.**

**fakhri, OechsnerC: Thanks!**

**Chapter 10: Peace and Sports**

The bell was ringing, signaling the start of class as Sean was sitting in his desk. He was reading a new manga that he had bought yesterday about a college student who was sent to a fantasy world with three other guys while people from that world praised them as heroes. But the student had been branded as a criminal by the royalty of that world, yet he continues his quest to stop the threat to the new world so he can return to his own.

It was an interesting read. Sean couldn't seem to put it down as all of his classmates were scrambling to sit at their assigned seats. After all that was done, the teacher came into the classroom and stood at his podium in front of the class.

"Alright, everyone. Now before we begin class, we have a new student joining us." The mentioning of a new student got Sean's attention. He could make a good guess on who it could be.

And lo and behold, it was Asia. She wore the same girls' uniform she had on at the ORC, only with a black sweater vest over the dress shirt. She seemed a little nervous standing in front of a whole bunch of people, but she put on a gentle and happy smile and tried her hardest to put her best foot forward. She bowed in greetings to the whole class.

"Hello. My name is Asia Argento. I'm feeling a bit like a fish out of water, but I'm excited to be here." The entire class gushed over Asia, especially the guys, who couldn't get over the cuteness that the former nun seemed to portray.

"Shorty's hot!" Matsuda cheered.

"83-55-81! And just look at all that blonde hair!" Motohama said as he adjusted his glasses with the sunlight reflecting off of them.

Sean looked over to Issei and saw him smiling because of how well Asia seemed to be fitting in. And the human couldn't help but do the same. After everything that she's been through, it was nice seeing that Asia was going to do just fine here.

"Being in a new school in a strange town can be overwhelming, but I've been able to adjust while staying with Issei." Asia innocently informed the entire class. This caused the guys to be insanely jealous of the resident pervert and the girls to be shocked that Asia would be staying with said pervert.

Sean didn't know why, but he was a little surprised that Asia was actually living with Issei. Maybe Rias thought it was a good idea to room her with familiar people? Sean was immediately brought out of his thoughts as Matsuda and Motohama rushed the third member of their Trio.

Matsuda was shaking Issei by the collar of his shirt while Motohama had him in a full nelson and they were both crying tears of jealousy. After the church incident, Sean had an inkling of respect for Issei. Even though he was still a raging pervert, he had some decent traits underneath it all.

Sean set his manga down and got out of his desk. He walked over to the two perverts harassing Issei and grabbed them by the back of their shirts. Sean pulled them toward him, freeing Issei from their envious ire. The two in Sean's hands were sweating nervously as the human holding them back had an ominous look on his face.

"You two really need to get a handle on your emotions. It's bad enough that you disturb me from my naps outside, but now you're bothering me from my reading in class. But above all, you're manhandling your own friend over something like this?" Sean told the perverts.

The duo's dread only increased has they heard their captor's tone. Like he was barely restraining himself from hurting them. Sean turned his gaze to Motohama, who could've sworn that Sean's eye color took a deeper hue of purple, but he was too frightened to tell for sure.

"So, I have an idea. How about we all take our seats and try to get on with our day? What do you say?" Sean suggested. The perverts nodded their heads so fast in fear that their faces became blurs. Sean's expression turned from ominous to grateful as he smiled at them for being understanding of their own situation.

"Good." he said. Matsuda and Motohama were glad that they averted pain at the hands of the American. However, Sean felt like they needed a light warning. He tightened his grip on the shirts in his hands, pulled his arms away, and sharply pushed them back together, causing the two perverts' heads to collide into each other. They shouted at the sudden impact and had watery eyes from the stinging of the craniums.

Sean let go of their shirts as they backed away from each other and held their heads in pain. They grimaced at the feeling of their own thick skulls smashing together while Sean sat back down at his desk to read his manga.

Issei was a little torn from what just happened. He was a little angry that Sean had hurt his friends, but he was thankful that he got them off of him. It seemed like that the human was starting to actually become a little nicer to him.

"Oh, and if you want to beat up Issei so bad, just do it after school." And with that suggestion, Issei's opinion of Sean went right back to normal.

The Devil sat back down at his desk and looked over to Asia, who seemed to be talking with some of the other girls. He was happy to see that she was getting along with the other girls and hoped things only got better for her.

"Harris!" Sean looked up from his manga as he saw Murayama and Katase approaching him.

"Yes?" he asked the girls.

"We wanted to let you know that your outfit for the Kendo Club is here. Just come by the club and you can participate in the lessons." Murayama said.

"Plus, the captain is going to be there and she gets final approval on who gets in." Katase added.

"Wait, I thought you two were the captains." Sean said with surprise.

"No. She's been practicing at her family's dojo for a meet that's coming up. We've just been looking over the club in her place."

"In any case, don't forget to come down to the gym for practice." Murayama told Sean.

"Got it." Sean simply answered. The two girls nodded and went back to talk with Asia. The guys around Sean couldn't believe that he had actually got to take part in the Kendo Club's practice. They would've swarmed him with questions, but they all remembered what he did with Matsuda and Motohama and decided to keep their distance.

**XXXXX**

With his last class over with, Sean made his way down toward the gym to actually attend his first Kendo practice. He was actually looking forward to getting some sword training. He's been mostly sticking to physical exercise and meditation.

Sean reached the gym to see the entire Kendo Club, clad in their uniforms and going through with their pre-training stretches and practice sword swings. Murayama and Katase were once again overlooking the other girls as Sean approached them.

"Hey!" he called out to the pair. They turned to see his arrival and walked over to him to meet him halfway.

"Glad you could make it." Murayama said to Sean.

"Yep. So, is everything ready yet?"

"Not yet. We just need to wait for the captain. You can take a seat at the sideline until she gets here." Katase replied. Sean nodded and went on his way.

The girls went back to overseeing the other club members. They took some glances at Sean as they continue their prepping for their training. Sean paid them no mind as he put his earbuds in his ears and went to listening to some music while he waited for the Kendo captain.

The phone dried up thanks to the rice after Sona had completely soaked it from abruptly woke him up from his nap after the church incident. Sean thought that the Student Council President was overreacting to napping outside. But then again, he had been doing it ever since he enrolled in the Academy and he knew he wouldn't like being forced to continuously searching for someone on his own time.

He put that event in the back of his mind and let himself fall into the auditory embrace of Slipknot's "Wait and Bleed". Sean may have enjoyed a few types of music, but he always enjoyed rock and metal. They were the genres that he grew up with.

A tapping on his leg snapped him out of his session. He took out his earbuds and saw Murayama and Katase standing in front of him.

"The captain's here! Look alive!" Katase told him. Sean stood up from the ground and looked over to the door. From there, Sean saw a beautiful girl walking towards the group.

She was tall for a Japanese girl, her height came just right below Sean's. Her hair was long, straight and was colored a shiny purple with a triangular fringe at the front that barely touches the ridge of her nose. The girl wore the Kendo uniform with a wooden shinai in her hand. She also had blue eyes and sizable breasts.

_"Wait, what? Oh god, don't tell me that Devil perv is rubbing off on me!"_

_**"Who cares? You're finally noticing the glory of the female form! I couldn't be more proud of-"**_ Izanagi went on until he got decked in the mouth by Izanami.

_**"You damn perv!"**_ she shouted indignantly at her husband.

_**"Oh, don't mind him, Sean. Though I am a little disappointed in you. I thought you liked Akeno and now you're checking out other girls?"**_ Morrigan said to her host.

_"Ugh! Come on, I don't need this right now!"_

The apparent captain had noticed Sean's presence and approached him and the two girls.

"Murayama, Katase, is this the boy you were telling me about?" she asked her clubmates.

"Yes, captain. He asked us if he could learn Kendo with us." Katase answered.

"We've only restricted him to watching our practices until his uniform came in. And until you evaluated him for yourself, ma'am." Murayama added.

The captain turned to Sean and looked him over. She had a blank expression on her face as she walked all around him. Sean followed the Kendo captain with his eyes, feeling somewhat self-conscious about her silent evaluation. She stopped her circling to right in front of him.

"Well, he seems like he could keep up. How many of our practices have you seen?" the captain asked.

"Not many. This was something that I asked for recently."

"I see. In that case, you'll have to go through the basics. Get changed and we'll see what you've learned from watching us." Sean nodded. Murayama tossed Sean's new uniform to him and went to the locker room to change.

A few minutes later, Sean came out wearing the uniform. He was just glad that there was an instruction sheet inside it so he didn't take all day trying to put it on. It was a simple outfit of a white _keigoki _with a black _hakama._

Sean walked up to the captain and she looked over his uniform.

"Not bad. Seem like you followed the instructions OK." she mentioned.

"Thanks. Um... sorry I didn't catch your name earlier. Now that I mention it, I don't think I gave you mine. I'm Sean Harris, second-year." Sean introduced himself as he stuck out his hand to the captain.

She smiled and grabbed his hand with her own. "I'm Saeko Busujima, third-year."

"Nice to properly meet you."

"Likewise. Now that that's out of the way, let's see if you've learned anything from our practices." The two let go of each other's hand and they both went to the center of the gym to begin practice.

**XXXXX**

As he left Kendo practice in his school uniform, Sean was surprised at Saeko's teaching style. She didn't lay into him like his father did whenever he tried to teach him something. She just calmly told Sean the error he was making while tapping the problematic body part. Apparently, posture was critical in Kendo, so he couldn't deviate in any way in his stances. After the lesson ended, Saeko told him to practice his stance at home to help him catch up with the rest of the club members.

Sean arrived at his house. He just stood to once again marvel at the large buiding that was now his home. He never thought that he would even have something like this. And as a thank-you gift, no less!

Sean was about to go inside when he noticed that a letter was inside his mailbox. He took out the parcel and opened the envelope. It was just a simple message from Azazel.

_Sean,_

_I realized that I forgot to mention a few things before I left._

_First, the ground rules for Raynare, Kalawarner, and Mittelt:_

_1\. They can't leave Kuoh without your presence under any circumstances._

_2\. They aren't allowed to interfere with the Devils residing there._

_3\. I will be dropping by to check up on their behavior that will be monitored by you._

_Second, there is a personal question that I forgot to ask you. But that can wait until my first visit which is in a few days._

_I'm sorry for dropping them in your lap. But like I said, this was the only way I could convince the rest of the Grigori to spare their lives. I hope to hear some good news when I come by._

_Azazel_

_PS: I hope I made the bed big enough for you, Raynare, and Kalawarner!_

Sean had a flat look on his face as he saw the post scriptum in the letter and decided to tear it out and put it in his pocket. He kept the letter in his hand for the Fallen women to read as he enter his home.

"Come on Kalawarner! I want to watch something!"

"No, my show's not over yet!"

Sean sighed at the voices that he heard coming from the living room. It was like this every time he came back. As soon as he opened the door, Sean would hear Kalawarner and Mittelt arguing about stupid things like wanting to watch something on TV, what to have for dinner, or some other nonsense. Raynare tries to keep a lid on them, but they just fall back into their squabbles soon after.

Sean walked into the living room. "I see you two are still as dysfunctional as ever." he commented dryly. Mittelt immediately shut her mouth. She still couldn't get over her fear of the human. Sean has tried to calm her down, but she always seemed to try and keep her distance from him all the time.

"I don't see how that's any of your business." Kalawarner retorted. Out of the trio, she has been the most trouble. No matter what happened between her and Sean, she kept giving him a hard time. She even gave him a couple of looks that told Sean that she didn't like him.

"Whatever." Sean shrugged off and took out Azazel's letter. "Anyway, I got a letter from Azazel. He said he's going to visit to get my report of your progress."

"Lord Azazel's going to be here?!" Raynare joyously repeated. She was out of her previous skimpy out and instead wore a simple purple T-shirt with black jeans. Raynare was the most manageable one of the trio. She kept up with herself and even tried helping out around the place. Although Sean believed she was doing it more for Azazel's approval than genuine courtesy.

"Yes, but-" Sean replied to the fanatic before Raynare ran back out of the room. Sean sighed at her antics and decided to tell her about Azazel's date of arrival later.

"Now about dinner. Anything in particular you two want?" he asked the women in the room. Mittelt just frantically shook her head and Kalawarner just said that she didn't care.

Sean went over to the kitchen and chose to make one of his favorite meals he used to eat back in America. Fried catfish with spaghetti and salad on the side. After the oil heated to its optimal temperature, Sean took out the frozen catfish from the freezer and put a few fillets into the fryer. While they began to fry, he started cooking the ground beef and preparing the sauce for the spaghetti.

_"They are being very difficult."_

_**"Kalawarner, definitely. But that Mittelt has always been scared to death of you."**_ Morrigan said.

_"Well, that was just wrong place, wrong time. It's not like I've been trying to keep her terrified of me."_

_**"You should at least try to help her get over her fear."**_ Thoth suggested.

_"How can I when she avoids me like the plague?"_ Sean asked while he let the sauce simmer and started on boiling water for the noodles.

_**"You're going to have to figure that one out on your own."**_

_**"Kalawarner is going to be a greater challenge. I know that look in her eyes. Those were the eyes of hatred. Fear can be overcome, but hatred? That emotion can be so deep-rooted that it never leaves people's minds."**_ Chronos explained.

_**"If she wants to fight, then don't hesitate to do so, Sean."**_ Heimdall told his host.

_**"What?! No, don't do that! You can't lose a fine lady like that!"**_ Izanagi tried to stop the Norse god's line of thinking.

_**"'Fine lady'? You're just begging me to beat you up, aren't you? With the amount of punishment I put you through, I'm beginning to think that you're a masochist."**_ Izanami said to her husband.

_**"OK. First, a man would have to be blind to not notice that she's hot. Right, guys?"**_ the Shinto god of creation reached out to the other gods.

_**"Don't bring us into your problems, Izanagi."**_ Heimdall replied.

_**"This is your business." **_Yama said.

_**"I refuse to be a part in this."**_ Thoth spoke up.

_**"Leave me out of it."**_ Chronos told Izanagi.

The Shinto god simply look at the other male divinities with a flat look of betrayal on his face and turned back to his wife. Izanami just stared at him with her sharp red eyes, making her husband give out a nervously weak laugh.

_**"A-Anyway, the other thing is that we don't know where this could lead. Maybe she'll keep hating him even after the probation. Maybe she'll fall in love with him. I don't know. All I know is that he should at least try to make nice with them."**_

_"I'll make nice just so they can get out of here alive. But I seriously doubt any of them are actually going to fall in love with me. And I know I'm never gonna love them. They all tried to kill me, after all."_ The noodles for the spaghetti were finished as Sean was now chopping up the veggies for the salad.

_**"Never say never, Sean. Stranger things have happened. Just look at me and Izanami. She hits me on a near-daily basis and we're married."**_

_**"So you **_**do**_** realized you're married and you **_**still **_**ogle other women?"**_ Izanami contemptuously questioned her husband. Izanagi started to sweat profusely as he saw his wife's terrifying aura around her being.

_**"Now, now, Izanami. Remember what I said before? 'My heart will always belong to you.'"**_ he tried to quell Izanami's anger with his arms raised up to calm the irate goddess. Unfortunately, his attempts were pointless as she approached him.

_**"Oh, I know. But I think that you need to be reminded of that fact."**_ Izanami told Izanagi.

_**"Uh, somebody? Anybody? HELP-!"**_ Izanagi tried to call out to the other gods but Izanami cut their connection from the others.

Sean concentrated on making dinner as he finished the salad and took out the catfish fillets and placed them on a plate covered with paper towels to soak up the excess oil from the fish. He kept the noodles and sauce separate as he took out the parmesan for the spaghetti, hot sauce for the catfish and salad dressings.

"Dinner's ready!" Sean called out to the Fallen Angels in the vicinity. Kalawarner strolled in the kitchen with Mittelt following close behind her.

"This is what you made?" Kalawarner asked with a somewhat disappointed tone in her voice.

"Yes. You said that you didn't care about what I made. If you have a problem with it, make your own dinner." Sean told the bluenette Fallen Angel. Raynare came into the room at that moment, wearing the BDSM-like outfit she wore when Sean first saw her.

"So when is Lord Azazel going to arrive?" Raynare asked while she straightened her hair for her leader.

"He's not going to be here for a few days." Sean answered.

"What?! Why didn't you say that earlier?!" she shouted out to the human.

"If you had waited, for like three seconds, I would've told you then. Instead, you just ran off to your room." Raynare got annoyed and a little embarrassed that she jumped the gun from hearing of her leader's supposed arrival.

"Anyway, dinner's on the counter and the stove. Help yourself. And before you leave, Azazel sent a letter to you about the rules of your probation." Sean told her, snapping her out of her self-consciousness. She got a plate and filled it with the food that was served. Mittelt went over to make her own plate and sat at the table. Kalawarner did the same, only to hear know what Azazel had told them.

Sean took out the letter from Azazel and read out the rules to the Fallen Angels. After hearing what the letter said, the three had different reactions.

Raynare was giddy that her Lord would arrive after a short time. Mittelt's dread crept back into her, knowing that she would have to be around Sean more often. And Kalawarner just got irritated that Azazel essentially dubbed Sean as their babysitter. Sean put the letter back into his pocket and went to get his own plate.

"As far as I can tell, you can still go out as long as you stay in town. Though, you should stay away from the Devils. Especially the Gremorys." Sean summed up the letter.

"Yes, we get that. We're not stupid." Kalawarner coldly retorted. Sean simply shook his head and continued to eat his dinner.

**XXXXX**

The school day was winding down to its end as Sean was walking down the courtyard sidewalk toward the front gate of the school. He wanted to go down to the manga shop to see if there were any new volumes of his favorite manga out yet. But as Sean walked through the school, he noticed that a lot of the students were conspicuously missing. It was strange, but nothing that actually concerned Sean.

"Come on, dude! We're gonna miss it if you don't hurry up!"

Sean looked over to see a pair of guys running past him, going in the opposite direction to the sport fields. Raising an eyebrow, Sean wondered why they were in such a rush. His curiosity got the better of him as he decided to follow them to whatever they were so desperate to see.

He finally arrived at the tennis courts. Students crowded all over the place to look through the fence that surrounded them. They were yelling, cheering, some of them even tried climbing over each other to get a better look.

Sean circled the fence to find a space thin enough to walk through. He went in a spot that was less condensed with people and approached the fence. He then gained a flat look as he saw who was inside.

Rias Gremory, Sona Sitri, Tsubaki Shinra, and Akeno Himejima. All in tennis outfits with their own rackets.

Sean's eyes stayed on Akeno's form a little longer than the other three. She certainly was beautiful in that outfit, though she looked good in her usual school uniform. Her eyes like precious jewels. Her smile that stunned him. And it didn't hurt that her body was something that was to behold.

_**"I caught your eyes lingering, Sean~."**_ Sean snapped out of his unintended ogling as he heard Morrigan's teasing.

_"What? I didn't-"_

_**"There's no point in denying it. There's also no shame in liking a girl at your age."**_ Morrigan playfully said to her host.

_**"That's what I've been telling him this whole time! If anything, it's a man's duty to appreciate the female form and all of its wonderful assets! The bouncing boobs! The juicy ass! Those thick thighs!"**_ Izanagi shouted in Sean's mind. He would've continued if it wasn't for the closed hand of punishment that came swinging across his mouth.

_**"How about their painful fists?!"**_ Izanami said through gritted teeth while she held up her steaming fist, leaving a red imprint on her husband's face.

_**"Not as much."**_ the Shinto god whimpered out as he cried in agony.

Sean looked around the court to see the other students wait in barely restrained anticipation to see the Great Ladies of Kuoh play their tennis match. Well, they didn't have to wait any longer as Rias served up first.

"Hey, Harris!" Sean heard a voice call out from behind him. The American turned to see Kiba and Koneko standing in an open space away from the fence.

"Hey guys." Sean said to them as he walked up to them. "So what's going on here?"

"Well, there was a bit of an argument between Rias and Sona about who would get familiars. So they decided on settling it with a tennis match." Kiba explained as the Devils and human kept their eyes on the game.

"'Familiars'? You mean those supernatural creatures that can be contracted to Devils?" Sean asked.

"That's right. The Familiar Master only allows one Devil peerage into the Familiar Forest, the place in the Underworld where Familiars can be found, per month on the full moon." Sean nodded at Kiba's explanation as they kept watching the tennis match.

The game's pace kept escalating as the serves and returns were getting faster and harder. Every time one of the ladies hit the tennis ball, another from the opposing team would send it back with a vengeance.

"This is starting to get out of hand." Koneko plainly pointed out.

This proved to be true as Sona smacked the ball towards Rias while the ball itself had a subtle blue aura around it. Rias tried to return it back to her, but as the ball landed in front of her, its angle suddenly changed and veered in a direction outside of Rias' reach.

Sean was surprised that Sona would actually use magic to get the upper hand and in front of humans, no less!

"Did Sona just use magic?!" Sean asked with mild shock.

"Yep. There was a rule against that, but it doesn't look like they care much anymore." Koneko replied with a nod.

"That's not the point! What about everybody else that's watching?"

"Well, it doesn't seem like anyone's noticed it. So I guess it's OK?" Kiba reasoned with an uneasy smile and a sweatdrop.

Sean couldn't really make any kind of argument because he used his Infinity Gauntlet on school grounds, which is how he even ended up in his situation in the first place. Still, you think that the Devils that were in charge of looking after this town would be a bit more responsible when out in public.

The match had to be stopped when all of the rackets were destroyed before the game could be finished. Sean was a little amused in how this whole thing turned out. The crowd around the court started to pan out while Rias shook Sona's hand in good sportsmanship while Akeno did the same with Tsubaki.

The students around the area were talking about how amazing the Great Ladies were or, mostly from the Perverted Trio, how sexy they looked while playing. Sean started to leave himself when he saw Rias talking with Sona. Sean wanted to hear how they would settle this, so he willed the Mind Stone to enhance his hearing.

"Well, Rias. How else do you think we should handle this matter?" Sona asked the redhead.

Rias held her hand to her chin in a contemplative manner as she racked her brain to figure out a different solution to their problem.

"How about we play a team sport? We are doing this for our peerages. It's only fair that they should participate with us." Rias proposed.

"Very well. Which sport did you have in mind?"

"Why not dodgeball?"

"Yes, that seems acceptable. Then how about tomorrow night in the gym? The winning team will be able to go straight to the Familiar Forest by then."

"Be ready for your loss, Sitri."

"We'll be prepared for victory, Gremory."

The two Kings parted ways with their respective Queens in tow. Sean began to think of all the ways that a dodgeball game could play out between the two Devil groups. And as he imagined it, a smile grew on his face and got bigger as his thoughts went along. He would definitely be crashing that game.

**XXXXX**

The members of the ORC were in their PE clothes inside the gym for their impending dodgeball game. Issei was stretching out his body with Koneko pressing down on the Pawn's back while Akeno did the same for Asia. Rias was practicing with Kiba, throwing a ball back and forth to each other to practice their aim.

"It feels like my legs are burning!" Asia screamed as she tried to touch her toes. She was having a hard time loosening her muscles. Having lived a sheltered life in the Church didn't really give her a lot of exercise.

"It's alright. Just try to stretch a little bit farther." Akeno encouraged the Bishop while she pushed on Asia's back.

"OK!" the Bishop yelled out, pushing through the pain. Though, it wasn't easy for her to do. Her screams only increased in volume as she kept reaching out for her toes.

Issei looked over as Asia's screaming and Akeno's support for her teammate caused his mind to wander into more adult-themed territory. Drool started to drip down from his lower lip as he visualized an erotic situation between the two girls.

Koneko realized why Issei wasn't paying attention to his pre-stretches. Her eyes narrowed in irritation and decided to snap him out of his fantasies. Literally.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" by pushing his upper body so far that the entire gym could hear the snapping of Issei's spine.

"Oooh! That sounded painful!" Everyone looked over to the bleachers and saw Sean Harris sitting there with a smile on his face from hearing the Pawn's pain and his backpack that was sitting right next to him.

"Harris, what are you doing here?" Rias asked the human.

"Well, Kiba told me about how you and Sona were trying to decide who would get familiars. And I overheard you two planning on this dodgeball game. So I decided to sit back and watch the carnage." Sean explained with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders.

"What do you mean, 'carnage'?"

"You four were blatantly using magic during that tennis game. Real subtle, by the way. And if the four of you could destroy your rackets with everyone watching, I can only imagine what all of you could do when no one's watching. Well, with one person watching, anyway."

"Are you sure you should be lecturing us on the use of magic on school grounds?"

"No. But considering that you four did it with the entire student body in attendance and I only did it with Issei around me, with his back turned I might add, I think I was being more careful than you were." Rias had a look of annoyance as she couldn't come up with a rebuttal to Sean's logic. She just sighed and got her stress out so she could focus on the game at hand.

"I suppose that's fine." Rias allowed the American to stay and watch.

"Oh! Everyone, I wanted to give you guys something!" Issei called out when Asia finished healing his spine from Koneko's wrath. He went over to the bleachers to get a small box and brought it over to the other members.

Sean watched over the ORC members and saw that Issei had apparently made headbands for the whole club. They were appreciative as they accepted the headgear and tied them in place.

"Ready for us?" Sean and the ORC looked over to see that Sona and the Student Council had just arrived, ready to play the game.

"I just hope that you're ready to lose!" Rias retorted in friendly competition.

_**"I see that this game is going to be more of a war."**_ Heimdall said, seeing the fire in the eyes of the two Devil leaders.

_**"Hmm, I hope we'll see a few of them in pain~."**_ Morrigan added with some excitement in her tone.

_**"Well, I hope that I'll be able to get some good angles on those bloomers!"**_ Izanagi unsurprisingly made his usual perverted comments.

_"Alright, that's it! I'm cutting the connection, Izanagi!"_ Sean angrily declared to the Shinto god.

_**"No! Please do-"**_ that was all that Izanagi could say before Sean closed off Izanagi from his mind. The American sighed in relief and even began to wonder why he didn't think about doing that before.

The two teams got to their positions on their sides of the court. The starting whistle blew and the dodgeballs started flying immediately. Some of them were thrown so hard that Sean had to use the Time Stone just to keep track of them.

For example, Tsubasa took a shot at Koneko. The petite Rook pulled off a Matrix-style dodge, but the ball flew so fast that it tore across her shirt. This, unfortunately, gave a point to the Sitris since the ball did touch her. The first-year simply shrugged it off, saying that she was thirsty anyway. After getting a water bottle, she decided to take a seat next to Sean.

"Hey." Koneko greeted the human.

"Hey, back at ya." Sean replied. Though, he felt a little awkward considering the state of her shirt.

"Don't you have a spare shirt?" he asked. Koneko only shook her head in denial. Sean decided to help her out.

He took his backpack and opened the dirt compartment of it. He brought out his Infinity Gauntlet and the Reality Stone shined as he stuck his hand inside. He started to pull his hand and he took out a spare shirt that looked exactly like the shirt Koneko was wearing, only without the rip on it.

"Here you go." Sean said, handing the newly made shirt to the first-year. Koneko looked at the shirt and Sean before taking it and going to the locker room to change.

Sean turned back to the game at hand. Though from the look of it, it was exactly as Heimdall described it would be. A war. Magic circles of red and blue were all over the place, dodgeballs flying at every angle, screams from both teams could be heard. It made Sean a bit jittery as he saw the mayhem. It made him want to join in on the fun!

"Here comes the pain!" Sona declared as she threw another dodgeball, this time at Issei. The Gremory Pawn tried running away from it. But not only did its speed didn't decrease, it actually changed direction when he tried getting out of the way.

Issei even tried ducking out of the flying projectile's path. This only made the ball to correct itself and return to its target. Issei couldn't see the ball again and frantically searched for it. Only the ball had finally found its mark. The weak point of any man.

Sean cringed and turned away as he saw the ball connect to Issei. No man should have to suffer that pain, unless he did a truly unforgiveable crime. This was not one of the times.

"What did I miss?" Sean jumped in surprise as Koneko suddenly appeared beside him wearing the new shirt Sean gave her.

"Something painful." the human answered as he got up and went down to the ORC that huddled around the wounded Issei and concerned Asia. The Bishop explained that she needed to know exactly where the Pawn hurt to heal him. Sean sighed at the innocence Asia portrayed in her worry.

"Issei, do you think you can keep going?" Rias asked, who was also perturbed about her Pawn's condition.

"Yeah. I can-" Issei tried to stand up, but the pain in his balls still lingered and dropped back down to his knees.

"Issei!" Asia and Rias called out to the pervert.

"Dammit!" Issei cursed as he cupped his wounded groin.

"Issei, you're in no condition to keep going. Asia, I want you to take him to the bleachers and heal him." Rias ordered.

"Yes, ma'am!" Asia responded. Kiba went and picked Issei up by his shoulder and guided him to rest on the bottom bleacher.

"This isn't good." Akeno told her King.

"You're right. With Asia tending to Issei, we're down two members. And we were already outnumbered to begin with." Rias summarized the situation. She didn't want to admit it, but their chances of winning were dwindling.

"Hey! I'll take his place!"

Everyone looked over to Sean who declared his willingness to replace Issei in the dodgeball game. Rias herself was especially surprised from the human's sudden enthusiasm.

"Really? You would take Issei's place? Even after seeing how we're playing?" Rias questioned.

"Sure! You guys are down a few players, aren't you? Besides, I actually want to play in this kind of game!" Sean excitedly said. This sort of behavior was out of the ordinary for him from the Devils' perspective, but it reawakened some of Sean's eagerness to play in physical games.

Back in America, Sean always wanted to play games with other kids before he became so distant from others. He tried to ask the other kids if they wanted to play with him, but they mostly ignored him. There were, however, a few rare exceptions. And when he played, he actually felt happy.

The ORC all smiled at Sean's kindness to help them. He didn't want to join Rias' peerage, yet he still went out of his way to help them. With the Stray Devil, Asia's rescue, and now with the game to get Issei and Asia familiars. Safe to say, he was a strange one.

"Is that alright with you, Sona?" Rias asked the Council President.

"I don't see why not. But it's not going to change the outcome!" Sona replied with a smug smile, accepting the change in Rias' lineup while boasting about her future victory.

"Awesome! I just need to change first!" Sean said as he got his backpack and went into the boys' locker room. He soon came back out wearing his PE tracksuit.

"Never thought I'd actually be playing this game, but I can't wait to get started!" Sean said to himself while stretching out his body to limber up. A few minutes later, Sean took his side of the court alongside the Gremory peerage.

Looking over the members that were still in play, there was Rias, Akeno, Kiba, and now Sean on the Gremory side. And on the Sitri's were Sona, Saji, Tomoe, Ruruko, and Tsubasa.

_**"Yes! Even though this is just a game, we're finally going to get some real action!"**_ Heimdall merrily cheered at the prospect of a little competition.

_**"I'm so glad you're finally getting into the spirit of things, Sean! I hope you make that blonde boy writhe in agony for his rudeness from before!"**_ Morrigan was happy for her host getting out there while her tone shifted to one laced with sweet poison for Saji. Sean could only smile in agreement.

"BEGIN!" Momo shouted out to the two teams as Kiba and Akeno rushed to grab a few dodgeballs for their team while Tomoe and Tsubaki did the same for theirs.

Kiba grabbed two dodgeballs and passed one to Sean. The human caught the ball and ducked his head after catching a glimpse of another heading straight for him. He saw that Saji had thrown the ball. He had an irritated look when his attack failed.

Sean wanted to pay Saji back for nearly outting him. He threw his ball at the blonde Pawn. However, Saji managed to dodge out of the way. Ruruko came up from behind him and threw her ball at Kiba. The Knight held up with his own ball and deflected the Sitri ball, but it knocked his own ball out of his hands.

This left him open for Tsubasa to throw her own like a cannonball at the Gremory Knight. Kiba only saw the ball for a split second before it nailed him in the stomach. The force of the hit caused him to be pushed back a good distance, but he was able to stop himself before he hit the wall behind him. He didn't worse for wear as he seemed fine enough to walk off of the court.

Sean picked up the ball that hit Kiba and retaliated by chucking the ball at Tomoe, who had been trying to back up Sona and ignored Sean altogether. She didn't even have the chance to defend herself as Sean's ball hit her in the arm, eliminating her from the game.

Akeno charged up her own ball with her lightning and threw it at Tsubasa. The Sitri Rook caught the ball, but wasn't protected from the electricity coursing through her body, effectively stunning her. But that also meant Akeno was out of the game.

Rias chose to take advantage of the opportunity her Queen gave her. She threw the ball in her hands and supercharged it with a magic circle to launch it even faster. Tsubasa's muscles were still locked up and couldn't stop the second ball from hitting her chest.

"Alright, time to get serious!" Saji called out. He thrusted out his left arm and a small black bracer in the shape of a chameleon-like lizard with violet eyes appeared on it.

_**"So that boy also has a Sacred Gear of a dragon's soul in it."**_ Morrigan pointed out Saji's bracer.

_"Really?"_

_**"Yes. That's Absorption Line. It's one part of a set of Sacred Gears that hold parts of Vritra's soul, one of the Five Great Dragon Kings. He's also known as the Prison Dragon."**_ Thoth explained.

_"Alright. So what? He can absorb energy like Morrigan can?"_

_**"Exactly. By attaching the lines that come out of its mouth. The power can also be transferred to the user to increase their own power."**_

_"OK then. Avoid the lines. Got it."_

Saji shot out a line from his Sacred Gear's mouth and it attached itself to Rias. The line started to glow pale blue and as a result, began to drain Rias of her own strength. Not long after that, Rias became so weak that she dropped to her knees and the ball she held in her hands slipped out. This allowed Sona to capitalize and knock Rias out of the game, leaving Sean as the only player left on the Gremory's side.

"Well, well. Looks like you're all alone, Harris! Might as well just walk away and give us the win!" Saji told the human, already proclaiming victory for his team.

_"Oh yeah. He's definitely gonna get it!"_ Sean thought, anger building up inside his mind from Saji's pompous attitude.

_**"Then shall we, Sean?"**_ Morrigan asked her host with a serene tone that clearly hid her own contempt for the Sitri Pawn's conceit. Hearing that, Sean grew a malicious smile on his face, eagerly preparing himself for the fun he had in mind. But he had to break the Sitris down first.

"Since you used your Sacred Gear against us, I think you'll find that turnabout is fair play." Sean told the remaining Sitri team members as he summoned his Infinity Gauntlet.

"Doesn't matter what you do. You're still going down!" Sona confidently declared. Sean got a little irritated that he was being underestimated, but that would only prove to be the Student Council President's downfall.

"You know, Sona. I have to say I'm very disappointed in you." Sean called out to the King on bespectacled King. Sona raised an eyebrow in confusion while everyone else wondered where Sean was going with this conversation.

"What do you mean?" Sona asked the human.

"Well, I saw the tennis game and I noticed that you were the first to cheat by using magic. Honestly, I never thought that you would be the first to do that. And more to the point, it kind of throws your entire professionalism into question." Sean explained. The irritation was beginning to show on Sona's face.

"What did you say?! Who do you think you are?! You think that you're better than the President?!" Saji yelled in outrage in defense of his King. The grip on the ball he was holding grew stronger as he did.

"No. It's nothing like that at all. I was just surprised that she would resort to such underhanded tactics to get what she wants. It certainly distorts her entire strait-laced appearance." Sean went on to undermine Sona's integrity.

"You bastard!" Saji couldn't stand listening to the human's disrespect anymore and started hurling dodgeballs at him.

Sean meanwhile used his Infinity Gauntlet with the Time Stone glowing, causing time to slow down and allowing him to easily dodge the incoming projectiles.

"Don't you talk about the President that way!" Ruruko aided Saji in his assault and threw her own dodgeball at the ill-mannered human. Sean picked up a dodgeball in each hand and used them to deflect his opponent's attack with ease.

Sona was offended by Sean's utter callousness of his words, but she couldn't figure out why he would act like this all of a sudden. She turned to her remaining Pieces who were still throwing more dodgeballs at the elusive human. She then noticed that they were starting to run out and finally realized Sean's plan.

"Wait stop!" Sona tried to cease their attack, but it was too late as Saji threw the last one they had at Sean, who suddenly caught the ball between the ones in his hands. Everyone looked in surprise as the human dropped the middle ball to ground, revealing an unusual smirk.

However, the smirk wasn't brought by overconfidence. It was the satisfaction he felt from knocking off arrogant people off their high horses.

"And now you're out of ammo." Sean pointed out to the irate Pieces as the finally took notice of the lack of dodgeballs on their side of the court and Sean's overabundance on his own side.

"You tricked us!" Saji roared in exasperation.

"Yeah." Sean merely replied, his smirk went down to an more easy-going smile.

Rias and the others were stunned to see how easily Sean was able to completely turn the tables in this game. His methods may have been a little much, but the results were effective.

"Seeing as how I technically caught that ball, I think that lets me bring someone back into the court." Sean looked over to the Gremory peerage and thought about who to bring back.

Issei was still being healed by Asia. Guess that hit he took did more damage than Sean had first thought. Kiba was still holding his stomach, probably waiting for his turn to be healed by the Bishop. The only ones who were able to continue were Rias, Koneko, and Akeno.

_**"Sean, I think now's the time to show Akeno what you've got."**_ Morrigan suddenly told her host.

_"I, uh, I suppose so."_

_**"You need to have more confidence in yourself. It'll help your chances with her."**_

Sean internally nodded at the Celtic goddess words and decided to take the chance. "Akeno, you're up!"

"Ara ara, guess I get the chance to work closely with Harris now." Akeno commented on the human's choice of her.

"You can take Ruruko and I'll get Saji." Sean assigned the targets for them both. Akeno didn't seem to mind. Sean tossed her a dodgeball and Akeno locked on to her Pawn prey with a smile that promised nothing but agony.

"Saji, I think it's time I show you what real pain is!" Sean said as he turned his attention to the male Pawn while the Power Stone shined.

Sean geared up his arm, ball in hand, and threw it with all of his might. The ball traveled faster than Saji anticipated. Before he could react, the ball hit Saji directly in the face. The force that went into that hit not only made Saji flew at the wall, it caused him to break through it. Leaving a giant hole as a result.

Everyone looked with wide eyes at the destruction that the human caused with a single toss of a dodgeball. Sean only had a sadistic smile on his face as he got payback from the arrogant Sitri Pawn. Saji, meanwhile, didn't even move from outside of the gym. The only sign that he was still conscious was his twitching hand that stuck out of the rubble from the wall that broke apart.

"OK, so he's not dead. Good." Sean sighed in relief as he knew that the Pawn was going to be fine. Sort of.

Akeno managed to take out Ruruko with another thunder-charged ball, made evident by the Sitri Pawn's twitching and frizzled hair.

"Things aren't looking very good for you, huh Sona?" Rias called out to the opposing King on the court. Sona didn't reply so she could stay focused on her enemies on the other side of the court.

"Seems like the end for you, Sona." Sean said to her, holding a dodgeball in his hands. "But don't worry. I won't send you through the wall like Saji. I was just paying him back for acting like an asshole to me from last time."

Sona didn't feel very relieved from Sean's assurance, so she still prepared for the worst that the American had to offer.

Sean took a dodgeball in his left hand and threw the ball at Sona. The Devil heiress couldn't move. After seeing Saji take the last hit from the human, her legs unexpectedly froze up. She couldn't make herself dodge the incoming ball. The Devil closed her eyes, waiting for the strike to happen.

"Time's up!" Momo called out.

Sean reacted to the announcement from the white-haired Bishop. Using the Mind Stone on the Infinity Gauntlet, Sean stuck out his hand in a grabbing motion.

Sona kept waiting for the imminent impact of rubber, but after a few seconds, she felt nothing. She opened her eyes to the dodgeball, hovering not a foot away from her face. Sona let out her breath, not realizing she was holding it in.

"With two players against one remaining, the Gremory team wins!" Momo announced to everyone in the room.

The Gremory team was ecstatic as most of them could be. Rias stood proud of her members and her victory. Kiba showed some reserved elation. Koneko was as stoic as ever. Issei and Asia were literally jumping with joy, cheering that they would be the first to get their own familiars.

Sean pumped his arms as he felt the rush of victory. Though this was interrupted by a certain ravenette.

"Ufufu~. You certainly know how to dish out some pain, don't you?" Akeno said with a faint blush on her face, thinking about how Sean completely decimated Saji.

"Oh, um, yeah. He was being a jerk to me when we first met, so I thought I should get some payback for that." Sean shakily told the Devil. He didn't think that the look on Akeno's face would fluster him that much.

Akeno only laughed some more at seeing the nervous look on Sean's face. It only made her want to tease him some more. She then left the human and walked back to her group.

And walking toward the bleachers, Sean was happy in his own way that the Gremory Devils had won. He picked up his backpack and wore it on his shoulder. He noticed that the Sitri Devils were leaving. Looking at Sona, she didn't seem to take the loss hard. But Sean felt like he crossed a line with what he said to her.

"Sona!" Sean called out to the heiress. Sona stopped to see Sean approaching her with a slight shameful look on his face.

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for what I said earlier. You know, about the cheating and undermining you part. I didn't mean anything by it. It was just part of my plan. People don't tend to think rationally when they're angry, so I hope you didn't take it personally." Sean told Sona while bowing his head.

Sona did feel a bit offended by his words from earlier, but he could understand his reasoning. Any blow that was taken to a Devil's pride would only be responded with aggression. But Sona could see that Sean's words were sincere.

"Very well. But I would caution you to refrain from doing so again. If you did that with any other Devil, they wouldn't hesitate to kill you." Sona warned the human and accepted his apology.

Sean smiled at the understanding that Sona had for him. "Thanks. That was a good game!" Sean showed his good sportsmanship and noticed that Saji was now out of the rubble and being piggybacked by Tsubasa.

"Though, after everything that's happened, it's going to be a while to fix everything." Sona said, mentioning the damage that Sean was responsible for.

"That? Don't worry, I got this. I made the mess, I'll clean it up." Sean offered.

"How are you going to do that?" Sona asked the human.

"Just watch." Sean simply replied as he walked toward the giant hole in the wall.

With the Infinity Gauntlet on his left hand, he stuck it out with the Time Stone glowing. He moved his arm to his right side, open hand, and motioned it to his left while rotating his hand in the counterclockwise direction.

While this happened, the rubble began to move on its own. Like it was all moving backwards as it moved when Saji went through said wall. Everyone in the gym could only marvel at the feat that Sean pulled off. The wall looked good as new, as if Saji didn't just break through it with his body.

Sean dismissed the Gauntlet and his left hand turned back to normal. He didn't even look winded from what he just did.

"There you go! Spick and span!" Sean said to the others as they were staring at the human that just fixed a wall with little effort.

"What? That? Why do you guys look so surprised? I'm sure you all couldn't fixed that wall just as easily." Sean pointed out their disbelief.

"Well, we just didn't expect a human to do that. What did you do anyway?" Rias asked Sean.

"I just reversed the time on the wall to the point when it wasn't broken." Sean simply explained.

The shock just kept piling on top of itself as the American said something as extraordinary as that with such simplicity. It was unthinkable about how powerful that a single human could be.

"Anyway, shouldn't you guys be getting ready to go to this 'Familiar Forest', Rias?" Sean asked the redheaded Devil. She snapped out of her daze as the human was right.

"Y-Yes. Everyone, let's head to the clubhouse. We should get ready to leave as soon as possible." Rias told her peerage.

[Yes, Miss President!] everyone in her peerage said. The ORC started to leave the gym and Sean started to do the same.

"Harris!" Sean turned to see that Rias had called out to him.

"What is it, Rias?" Sean tiredly asked.

"Since you helped us win the dodgeball game, why don't you come with us to the Familiar Forest?" Sean raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"You would really offer me to go with you? This isn't some way of trying to get me to join your peerage again, is it?" Sean questioned with narrow eyes. Rias only shook her head in denial.

"No. Normally Devil peerages are allowed to go to the Familiar Forest, so asking you to join my peerage would be an option. But I'll talk with the Familiar Master to permitting you to join us just this once." Rias clarified.

Sean wondered what would happen if he accepted her offer. I mean, would this "Familiar Master" really let him wander around in the Forest even though that he was a human?

_**"Go ahead and go, Sean."**_ Morrigan said to him.

_"I don't know, Morrigan."_

_**"No, she's right. This could be a good experience for you. A chance to learn more about the Devil way of life."**_ Thoth added.

_"I don't know about that, Thoth."_

_**"What do you have to lose? You heard what that blonde pretty boy said: only one Devil peerage can go in the Familiar Forest. Which means that you won't have to worry about anyone else finding you."**_ Izanagi reasoned.

_**"And besides, it's not like he's got anything better to do."**_ Izanami spoke up. Sean sighed at the insistence of the deities in his mind.

"Alright. I accept." Sean agreed to her proposal.

"Wonderful!" Rias replied.

"Though, we'll have to go my way."

"What do you mean?"

"Kiba said that Devil transportation circles only work for members of your Household. So we can just use my Space Stone to get there. I'll just need to use the Mind Stone to get a clear picture of where we need to go." Sean explained their dilemma while providing the solution.

"Very well, then." Rias agreed with the human. Sean walked over to her with the Infinity Gauntlet appearing again and the Mind Stone started shimmering.

"Alright. I need you to focus on an image of the Familiar Forest. Then I'll be able to see that image and use it to transport us there." Sean instructed Rias. She closed her eyes and did as he said.

The image she had was of a forest filled with dead black trees and above them was a red sky. It seemed like an odd place for anything to live, but it's not like Sean knew anything about what goes on in the Underworld.

"Alright, I got it. Let's meet up with everyone and get going." Sean said to Rias. The Devil nodded in agreement as they went to the ORC clubhouse.

**FINALLY! Two months and I finally updated this story! I'm sorry for not doing it sooner, but life just won't leave me alone! Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I also found websites that lets me read the manga and the LN so I'll be able to use all the material I can.**

**Now, regarding the two reviews I got for character suggestions: I might have mislead you guys there. I meant to say that **_**I'll**_** be adding one character per anime. Meaning that I'll be choosing the characters. Sorry if I'm bursting your bubble, but that's how it's going down.**

**And finally, Follow/Fav/Review!**

**See you guys next time!**


	11. Chapter 11: Familiar Territory (Part 1)

**Okay, before everyone starts to lay into me about my lateness with this update, I just have this one thing to say about the entire thing: Fuck life! Soon after I posted the second review promising an end of January update, I lost my job. Which, of course, led to a deep depression.**

**Not only that, but this chapter gave me no shortage of writer's blocks with all the content I wrote in here. Speaking of, I wanted to send a shout-out to BrxkenArrow for his support and ideas on this chapter, SlashFan2018 for his beta-reading, and most importantly all of you readers who put up with my bullshit until now.**

**To show my sincerest apologies, I made two parts of the Familiar Forest filler as well as a special surprise for you guys. The next chapter is close to completion, but I won't make the same mistake twice and promise on a deadline. So it'll get here when it gets here.**

**Now enough with my excuses and let's answer some reviews! (I'll get this out of the way for the future. I won't respond to reviews that answer any polls I put up. And I'll only count the votes on the poll themselves. And I'll only respond to reviews from the last chapter)**

**MasterOfDragonsGod, Abbadon44, Loke13: Thanks for your support!**

**BrxkenArrow: Thank you for that! Sorry about that, I'm not used to the romance bits like flirting. But I'm looking to get better at it, especially in this story.**

**fakhri: You're welcome. That's why I don't respond to flames.**

**The Storm Master 567: Well, I try not to display him as angsty. Well, despite his perversions, Issei is a decent guy. But at the same time, those perversions also make him lose some respect in turn. You can't expect two conflicting groups to get along right away after fighting each other. Saeko is my favorite girl in High School of the Dead!**

**GunBlade2020: Yeah, it just kind of hypocritical to see someone as by-the-book as her to cheat at anything. I hope it is for you!**

**Kushmeister420: You're welcome! Well, you're about to find out! Yeah, I like her character too! It's been a while since I saw HOTD, so I'm going to re-watch it when I get the time. I'll certainly try!**

**VirusChris: It's alright. Thanks! I'm trying to develop his character more as I go along in the story. I'm getting a better idea for his future in it, but nothing concrete. Yes, the HOTD girl. I haven't seen the Fate series at all, so don't expect any of them in the story. Eh, little column A and a little of column B with Azazel. I will, though it will be difficult to expand on their characters since they got very little screen time in canon. I'm actually trying to incorporate more of the light novels into the story at this point. I did. In chapter 2, their appearances are described at the beginning of the chapter. All I can say about writing time: if it's important, you MAKE the time.**

**AND NOW THE MOMENT YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING NEARLY FIVE MONTHS FOR!**

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_**[GET ON WITH IT ALREADY!]**_

**OK, SHIT! Enjoy!**

**Chapter 11: Familiar Territory (Part 1)**

The Occult Research Club members along with Sean were inside their clubhouse, celebrating their victory over the Student Council. Issei, Kiba, and Asia sat on one couch while Akeno and Koneko sat in the other with Sean sitting between them. Rias herself stood in front of her desk with a cup of tea in hand. She raised it in the air in front of her to toast their victory.

"Victory!" the redheaded Devil called out to her peerage and human guest.

[Victory!] the rest of the ORC repeated in kind. Except for Sean, who simply held his cup out in respect. Everyone took a drink from their cups in unison.

"I'm proud of all of you for your efforts in beating the Student Council." Rias told her peerage. They all smiled at their King's praise.

"I especially want to thank you, Harris." the human faced the Devil as she mentioned her gratitude towards him.

"While you didn't have to step in to help us, you did anyway. Not only that, but you also helped us win the game. And for that, I thank you."

Sean didn't know how to feel in this situation. He wasn't used to being praised. The only reason he really joined was to play in the dodgeball game. He didn't really care about who would win or lose, he just saw the opportunity to play and took it.

_**"Well, go ahead and answer."**_ Morrigan snapped him out of his awkwardness.

"It's alright. I just wanted to play the game. It seemed fun." Sean said with slight unease.

"You call that 'fun'?!" Issei asked with shock. "I thought those guys were trying to kill us with the way they played!"

"Yeah, it seemed so terrifying!" Asia agreed with Issei's description.

"Trust me. With what I've been through, that wasn't even close to terrifying." Sean told them with a shudder as he remembered all the times that Izanami had scared him to his core with her abrasive manner. Or when Heimdall trained him to the point where his bones would feel like they would break from the slightest movement afterwards.

"You were pretty amazing. I mean, you basically owned that game when you were by yourself. Then you threw that ball at Saji so hard that he went through the wall." Kiba complimented Sean as he recalled the human's work against Sona and her Student Council.

"That douche deserved it." Koneko added with her usual dry tone.

"No arguments from me." Sean replied.

"Me neither~." Akeno said. With a small smirk, she wrapped her arms around the human's bicep. "It's nice to know that I'm not the only one here that likes to cause a little pain every now and then." She whispered into his ear, leaning closer into him. Her breasts gently surrounded Sean's arm, making his face turn bright red from the contact.

_**"OH! Way to go, Sean! You can feel them, can't you? Those big boobs of hers pushing on your arm. So how do they feel? Soft? Firm? Can you feel her nipples through her shirt?" **_Izanagi badgered his host with a bevy of perverted questions.

Sean's embarrassment only heightened as the creation god kept trying to put into words on how he thought Akeno's breasts felt. There was a part of him that enjoyed his predicament, his hormones started to act up from the Devil's action. He even wondered if she was doing this on purpose. Izanagi himself was still trying to get details on the ravenette's boobs.

_**"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"**_ But all of that was stopped with a abnormally high-pitched shriek that pierced the human's eardrums. He didn't need to guess why it happened or who was responsible.

_**"There. Maybe that will help you use the head on your shoulders, instead of the one between your legs."**_ Izanami told her lecherous husband while he slid off his side of their throne and onto the floor of Sean's mindscape, clutching at his groin and whimpering in pain.

Issei was glaring at Sean in jealousy with his eyes pouring waterfalls of tears. He wished he could feel the bountiful chest of the Queen. He mentally cursed the American with every ounce of his perverted rage. And poor Asia stared at Issei with teary eyes and puffed-up cheeks.

_**"As much as I feel sorry for the poor thing, that jealous look on her face does look cute." **_Morrigan said.

_**"I know how you feel, little one."**_ Izanami sent her own sympathies to the Bishop while she propped her feet up on her still downed husband.

Meanwhile, Rias was surprised by her Queen's behavior. Akeno never showed any interest in men. In fact, there was a point that she even declared that she hated men. And here she was, hugging onto Harris' arm with a light blush on her face.

Rias cleared her throat to gain her peerage's attention. Akeno removed herself from Sean's arm and turned to her King.

"Even though Harris helped us win, that doesn't mean that any of you were less important in the game. I wanted to thank all of you for your help and to tell you that you should feel proud of yourselves." the King told her peerage.

Issei, however, didn't really feel that way. "I'm not sure if I should feel proud about getting hit in the balls." he dejectedly pointed out his earlier injury.

"C'mon dude. You might've gotten hit in your pride, but you did make these cool headbands for us." Kiba tried to lift the Pawn's spirits as he held up his own headband. Everyone else in the peerage seemed to be in agreement while Sean said nothing.

Issei cried tears of gratitude/joy when he took Kiba's hands into his own. "Thanks a lot for that! I don't mean to sound gay, but I'd kiss you if you were a hot chick!"

At that declaration, the room was silent from the awkward moment the Pawn had created. Kiba could weakly smile and sweatdrop at the Pawn.

"OK. Can we please move this along before this gets any more uncomfortable?" Sean suddenly spoke up, wanting the weird turn of events to end.

"Yes, it's time that we get going. Harris, if you would?" Rias agreed with the human.

"Wait, we're leaving right now?!" Asia asked, surprised by the suddenness of their impending departure.

"The full moon is tonight. Now's the only time to do it." Rias explained while Sean stood in the empty space of the room. His Infinity Gauntlet appeared on his left arm with the Space Stone glowing.

"Harris is coming with us?" Issei wondered, also in surprise that the human would be tagging along.

"Yes. Since he helped us win the game, I asked him if he wanted to join us and he accepted."

"Harris, why would you want to go with us?"

"Curiosity, boredom, take your pick." Sean simply said to the Pawn as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Harris. Usually, only Devil peerages can be in the Familiar Forest. In order to avoid trouble while we're there, I'm going to refer to you as my contract Magician." Rias said to Sean.

Magicians. Thoth told Sean about the kind of humans that were able to learn and use magic. They had a council of some sort that govern over Magicians. The contract Magicians are the ones that enter a pact with a Devil. Some do it for protection, knowledge, or even prestige; but that wasn't Sean wanted to be.

"This better not be something like 'you agreed to be my contract Magician, so that's what you are' kind of deal." Sean told Rias with a glare of suspicion.

"No, it isn't. I'll tell the Familiar Master that you're my contract Magician. And it'll only be in name. I swear as a member of the Gremory House that I won't trick you into being my actual contract Magician." Rias assured Sean with a voice that displayed sincerity and pride. The human just rolled his eyes at the Devil's showy vow.

"Whatever, as long as I don't have anyone knowing about me after this." Sean decided to bite the bullet, wanting to get on with the excursion. He held out his Infinity Gauntlet, the Space Stone shining, and a large portal appeared in front of the occupants.

"Well, you're not going to get familiars by standing around. Let's go." Sean said to them, walking on ahead. The Devils soon followed the human through the portal he created. It was strange to them. Normally, they would stand in a transportation circle and their bodies would be transferred to the place of their choosing. But with Sean's method, it was as simple as walking through an open door.

**XXXXX**

Stepping out of the other side of the portal, everyone had arrived in the Familiar Forest. The place was exactly like Sean had seen from Rias' mind. A forest full of dead-looking trees, red sky overhead, and a sense of dread that filled the atmosphere. Sean didn't really seemed to mind the creepy environment while Issei and Asia were a little frightened.

"Welcome to the Familiar Forest! Home to all kinds of creatures that can be claimed by Devils as familiars!" Akeno introduced their surroundings to the new Devils and human.

"This place is where the familiars live?" Issei asked to the other Devils. Asia, meanwhile, didn't speak and chose to hide behind Issei in fright. Koneko simply nodded in agreement without a word.

"Yeah. But there's no need to be scared. This is where we got our familiars." Kiba tried to alleviate their fears with little success.

"WHO WANTS ME?!" a voice yelled out into the air, spooking Issei and Asia. The blonde huddled closer to the back of the Pawn while Issei looked around, trying to find the source of the voice.

"Who's there?!" Issei called out to the voice.

"The Familiar Master aka Zatouji!" the voice declared as it came from above us. We all looked up to see a scrawny man with a sleeveless white T-shirt, a blue jacket that was tied around his waist, fingerless gloves, and red cargo shorts. He also wore a hat that was backwards and through the gap was tufts of his brown hair sticking out and had a large light green backpack.

_"What the fuck? Does this guy think he's Ash Ketchem or something?"_ Sean thought to himself with a confused look on his face.

"If your goal is to find familiars galore, you've come at the right time. That's for sure!" Zatouji said to the group below him. Sean raised an eyebrow as he heard the Familiar Master speak.

"Wait, did he just-" Sean started to ask himself before Zatouji resumed his introduction.

"The full moon is out to help you decide! And I'll be the one to act as your guide!" he finished with shaping his hands in the form of, what Sean saw, the English letter 'G'.

"Just in case you didn't notice, Zatouji is _really_ fixated on making everything he says rhyme." Akeno explained the Familiar Master's habit.

"Yeah, I got that. That's not gonna get old quick." Sean sighed, ending with no small amounts of sarcasm.

"So what familiar do you desire? Something strong? Something fast? Or something that uses fire?" Zatouji asked to the newcomer Devils.

Sean's irritation of the Familiar Master's speech habit only grew with each rhyme he made. It got old as soon he heard the first one and was starting to annoy him.

"Do you have any hot ones with big boobs?" Issei asked with his usual perverted mindset. Zatouji simply looked at the Pawn in disappointment while wagging his finger.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk! You amateurs always annoy! Familiars aren't toys, so use your other head boy! Want the familiar that's the best fit? Then find best personality, not best tit!" Zatouji lectured Issei, still rhyming away.

"Um, could you help me find one that's cute and fun to be around?" Asia timidly asked Zatouji. The Familiar Master's cheeks were suddenly dusted with a blush and had a cheek-to-cheek smile on his face.

"Fun? Consider it done!" Zatouji quickly agreed to the Bishop's request. Asia smiled gratefully while Issei just got mad from the 180 that the now helpful Pokémon cosplayer pulled.

_"I'll admit, he's committed to that rhyming bit." _Sean thought. The human's eyes widened as he realized his unintentional ditty.

_"Oh shit! It's contagious!"_ he thought in shock. Zatouji noticed his presence and became bewildered.

"Lady Gremory, who is that boy with glasses on his face? He's the only one of you that feels out of place." Sean got a angry tic mark on his forehead as the Familiar Master referred to his humanity, still in rhyme.

Rias turned to Sean and presented him to the jingle-obsessed Familiar Master. "This is Sean Harris, my new contract Magician." The introduction of being her contract Magician left a bad taste in Sean's mouth. Even if it was just in name, the thought of being under anyone's authority was not a pleasant one.

_**"It's alright, Sean. It's only until you get back to the human world."**_ Morrigan reminded her host.

_"I know. But it doesn't make it any better."_ Sean answered the war goddess.

Zatouji smiled at the new "inductee" into the Gremory family. "Well, welcome my boy! How can I help you? Have you come seeking a familiar too?"

Sean struggled to put on a friendly smile while one of his eyebrows twitched with indignation. "Oh no. I'm just a tagalong for this trip. But if I were looking for one, what would you recommend?"

Zatouji got excited, quickly took off his backpack and took out a large book. He opened it and was flying through the pages until he stopped and showed us a picture of a large dragon that drawn out through the entire page.

"If it's advice you want, I got just the thing! Tiamat, the sole female Dragon King!" the Familiar Master told everyone around him that saw the picture in his catalogue. She had the form of a Western Dragon with scales that seemed to be a shimmering celestial blue. Rias seemed particularly interested in it.

"Issei, since you possess the Red Dragon Emperor, why don't you try catching her?" Rias suggested to her Pawn with absolute confidence in his success.

"That's impossible, Miss President! It looks like the Last Boss in an RPG!" Issei retorted with fear as he didn't share the same belief in his own abilities.

"That's just your imagination, Issei. If the President thinks you can do it, then you should at least give it a shot." Kiba tried to persuade the Pawn.

"Shut up, Kiba! Why don't you go hunt it if you're so sure?!"

"Maybe you should give capturing Tiamat a shot, huh Harris?" Akeno teasingly suggested to the human.

"Yeah, I'll pass on this one too." Sean casually refused Zatouji and the Queen's suggestion. The Familiar Master looked back into his catalogue and started flipping through the pages again. He stopped once more on a large lizard-like monster with nine heads on a single body.

"This poisonous familiar, for your enemies, would spell disaster! For the immortal Hydra would even kill its own master!" The smile that he had on; Sean couldn't tell if it was genuine or if he was messing with the Devils.

"Stop. Just stop." Sean held his hand up to put an end to the Master's unrealistic familiar suggestions. "I think I'll just look around for now." Zatouji didn't seem to mind the human's denial.

"Then let's get going! What kind of familiars we'll find? There's no knowing!" Zatouji said to the group as he began to lead the way deeper into the Forest.

"Hang on!" Everyone looked at Sean who stopped the start of the Familiar Master's tour.

"So you're saying that you all are going that way?" the human asked while pointing toward the direction that Zatouji planned on leading he Devil.

Zatouji nodded at Sean's question. "Yes, that's the way. Why, do you have something to say?"

"Yeah, I'm going this way." Sean simply said as he turned to go off in the opposite direction. Everyone looked in surprise as the human planned on completely ignoring the guidance of the one person who could safely lead everyone through the Familiar Forest.

"Sean, are you insane?! You shouldn't leave to go off on your own! Especially in a place you know nothing about!" Rias lectured the human.

"She's right, boy. Listen to the girl. Going off alone is the worst decision in the world." Zatouji agreed with the redheaded Devil. Sean turned to the two most annoying people in his presence.

"First off, I can protect myself. And as for you," Sean looked at Zatouji with an irritated look an his face. "I'm going to put this in a language you can understand. The way you talk in rhyme makes me angry and sigh. If you won't talk normal, then I say 'bye-bye'." Sean told them as he walked away without giving the Devil and Familiar Master a chance to speak again.

"Sorry Lady Rias, but that guy's a jerk. And that attitude, a real piece of work." Zatouji commented on the rude human. Rias sighed as she couldn't help but agree with him.

"Well, he's a recent addition. He's never had much respect for any kind of authority." the King tiredly mentioned. "Let's get going."

"Miss President, you can't be serious! He might be a dick, but we can't just leave Sean to get hurt." Issei said to his King. Asia nodded in concurrence with the Pawn, worried over what might happen to her human friend.

"I don't want to do that either, Issei. But we don't have a lot of time here. Plus, he said before that he can sense our demonic energies. If he does get into trouble, I'm sure he'll catch up to us in no time." Rias reasoned. Issei and Asia still didn't like the idea of their human friend being alone in the Forest, but they chose to stay with Rias as they began to follow Zatouji.

However, they weren't the only ones who were worried. Akeno and Koneko looked back to the spot where Sean had disappeared from their sight. Koneko was the first to follow her King. From what she saw during the church incident, the human seemed to have enough strength to handle himself. Akeno's eyes still lingered on the spot for a little while longer before turning around to follow the rest of the Devils.

**XXXXX**

Sean was walking through the dead forest, attempting to calm himself from all the rhymes and demands that Zatouji and Rias doled out to him. He normally would've listened to some music while he walked through his environment, but he decided against it with all the potentially dangerous creatures that could be running around.

Wanting to get a higher vantage point and a better understanding of his surroundings, Sean looked to the tops of the trees around him. He found a particularly tall one that stood above all the others and went towards it.

**"That was very rude how you handled going off on your own, Sean."** Izanami pointed out her host's earlier behavior towards Rias and Zatouji.

"Maybe for Zatouji, but I don't regret doing that to Rias. I'm perfectly capable of defending myself. Besides, you can't tell me that Zatouji's rhyming habit was getting on your nerves." Sean defended his actions out loud.

**"So what? People have different quirks. I mean, you used to talk to us out loud when you were younger. Like you treated us as imaginary friends."**

"Well, it's not like that people aren't going to notice someone constantly talking to himself. That's not exactly something anyone would consider 'low-key'." Sean had finally reached the base of the tall tree.

With his Infinity Gauntlet on his left arm, the Reality Stone shined as Sean stuck out his foot on the side of the tree. Giving his leg an experimental tug to see that it had stuck to the tree's surface. He raised his another leg to meet with the first and Sean was now standing horizontally on the tree. It was as if gravity had shifted itself to accommodate the human's new footing.

"Alright, let's see what I can find here." Sean said to himself as he started walking upward towards the top of the tree.

**"This reminds me of one of those anime you used to watch. I believe it was the one about those ninja."** Thoth said.

"Ugh, well, don't remind me. I didn't even bother finishing the first part of that anime and I don't plan to any time soon."

After minute or two, the human finally managed to reached the peak of the tree. He properly stood vertically on the sturdiest tree branch he could find to support his weight. Looking throughout the forest, the only landmark he could find was a snow-capped mountain range beyond the tree line.

"Not much, but I guess it's better than nothing." Sean reasoned. While he didn't have much time to spend in the Familiar Forest, he did want to explore this new and strange terrain. He wondered what kind of creatures would live in the place.

"Guess I got time for a stroll." the American told himself as he then leaned forward and fell right off the branch he was standing on, his body was again parallel to the ground.

The Power Stone now glowed as he plummeted down through the lower branches. Each one that he hit felt like nothing as they snapped when the human made contact with any tree limb that his nosediving body made contact with. The ground was fast approaching, so Sean righted himself and landed directly on his feet, bending his knees so they could absorb the impact. The ground shook as the sudden contact caused a small tremor, scaring off any nearby wildlife.

Sean sighed in contentment. "I love doing that! Makes me feel like I'm unstoppable!" The human then started walking toward the mountains.

**XXXXX**

The American had spent about half an hour walking through the forest. After the landing he made from falling off the top of the tree, none of the other animals were willing to be around the strange yet powerful human that had such a presence.

Sean paid no attention to the cowering creatures as he went on his way to the mountains. He quickly got bored and decided to listen to some music. Digging into his pants pockets, he took out his phone and earphones. He placed the auditory accessories in his ears, plugged it up to his phone, and began scrolling through his playlist. He chose to go with a classic rock song. A timeless one, in his opinion: "Welcome to the Jungle" by Guns n' Roses. Although, not everyone shared his appreciation for the American's taste in music.

**"Sean, must you play that tumultuous noise?"** Yama complained, the rock music disturbing his meditation session.

"Sorry, Yama. It just gets so boring, walking around without any music to listen to." the human apologized to the Soul Stone occupant.

**"It's fine. Just please turn it down."**

Sean silently acquiesced to the Hindi god's request and turned down the volume to an acceptable level for Yama so he could continue his meditation. At last, the human had reached his destination.

The large stone prominences towered above the clouds that sparsely painted the red sky. In the distance, Sean could see a few caves that scattered around the faces of the mountains. With the Space Stone glowing, Sean created a portal to the entrance of the first cave he saw. The mouth of the hollow was gigantic, at least quadruple the size of Sean's own height of 5'9.

Sean's curiosity outweighed his caution and chose to venture inside the dark hollow. He took out his headphones and turned off his music as he took his first steps forward. Changing his eyes with the Mind Stone, Sean could see a clearer picture of the interior with a slightly brighter light coming from behind him. Strangely, Sean had reached an intersection inside the cave: two different cave openings on opposite sides of him. But there wasn't any light coming either one of them. Unsure about which cave to take, Sean simply chose the one on the left.

**"Hmm... this is strangely familiar to me."** Chronos said.

"Really? What does it remind you of?" Sean asked.

**"I'm not sure. But I do feel something similar about this place. And it's nothing good. Be on guard, Sean."** the human nodded and exercised more caution as he went deeper into the cave. Every time he found a different corridor, Sean went down the new path.

The silence of the caves was palpable. Every step Sean made on the stone floor echoed throughout the cavern. There was also a certain smell that permeated the air. It reeked of rotting meat and death, so bad that Sean felt that he was going to puke.

And the deeper Sean went, the more tense he became. He felt as though he was in a horror movie where the villain would pop out of nowhere and try to kill him. In this situation, it wasn't that far from the truth. Though, Sean wouldn't make it easy for them.

The human just kept walking through the cave and into other connecting tunnels. He felt like he was walking miles inside, going around in circles. Turn after turn, hallway after hallway, it seemed like this cave stretched out through the entire mountain.

His foot suddenly pushed something, causing several thundering clacking sounds to ring out. Sean stopped to look down and his face scrunched up in disgust as he saw bones littered all across the corners of the walls. Skulls, rib cages, arm and leg bones. Both humanoid and not.

"Well, whatever's in here, it's definitely carnivorous." Sean commented on the revolting "décor".

"RRRRAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" a bellowing roar then resounded out from further inside the tunnels. Sean had to cover his ears from the volume of the noise. Judging from how loud it was, whatever caused it must've been close.

**"Sean, you need to leave!"** Chronos abruptly shouted out loud, concerned for his host's safety.

"Yeah, the roaring kind of gave me that idea, Chronos." Sean sarcastically snipped at the time god. He started taking a few step in reverse back the way he came.

**"No, now I remember why this place seemed so familiar! It's just like-" **Chronos' exposition stopped when Sean backed into something that didn't feel like a stone wall.

Sean placed his hands behind himself to feel what he had bumped into. It wasn't the cold rocky walls that he felt before entering the cave. Rather, it felt like warm flesh. The human pushed himself forward and quickly turned around. And what he saw towered above him.

It stood on cloven hooves. Its legs held up its body like twin oak trees. The body was muscular, it made human bodybuilders like scrawny by comparison. The arms held a great double-headed axe in its grasp. But the head was the most peculiar. While most of the body was human-like, the head wasn't. It was really that of a bull's. Two long horns, sharp enough to gore anyone with a single headbutt. A golden nose ring pierced its snout that let out an angry snort. And two completely black eyes centered on the small intruder in its territory.

**"-the Minotaur's labyrinth." **Chronos finished his sentence as Sean marveled at the mythological beast that stood before him.

"RRRRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" the minotaur roared. The gargantuan axe it held was lifted above its head and swiftly swung the weapon down with the intent of killing the tiny trespasser.

Sean leaped away from the attack and the axe embedded itself on the rocky ground. The human gave the monster a wide berth while the minotaur pried its axe out of the ground with ease. The large weapon left an equally big fissure on the spot where the attack had landed.

**"Hmm... this beast's strength seems like it would provide a challenge. Sean, try fighting it." **Heimdall voiced his desire of battle to his host.

"Sorry Heimdall. We only get a short time here and I don't want to spend my entire night beating up this guy." Sean denied the guardian's request as he gave his full attention to the goliath.

"Alright. Since I don't have a lot of time to stick around, I'm just gonna knock you out and get out of here. What do ya say?" Sean playfully asked the bovine/human hybrid.

The minotaur's response was simply wind up its axe and keep swinging at the annoying human. Sean jumped over the incoming strike and saw the axe fly right under his body. The minotaur tried to cut down its target with another overhead downward strike. But Sean didn't move, he just stood there as if he had no wish to avoid certain death at the hands of the Greek monster. The axe came down upon Sean and then, the human activated the Power Stone on the gauntlet and quickly clapped his hands on the minotaur's weapon, effectively catching it between his palms.

"That's enough of that." Sean said to the colossal bull-headed behemoth. He pressed his hands against the sides of the axe until the entire blade-head shattered into pieces.

Angered by the loss of its weapon, the beast tossed the axe handle away and began to fight Sean hand-to-hand. The minotaur's hands tightened into fists and started swinging at the intruder. Sean then ran forward to get inside the behemoth's reach and started throwing his own punches right at its solar plexus. The beast grunted from the blows and gutturally groaned in pain. Taking a few steps back to regain its balance, it rubbed the sore spot on its abdomen and continued its attempts on Sean's life.

Annoyed by the human's resistance, the minotaur lowered its head and started charging at the human, its horns were pointed at its target to stab into its prey. Sean, however, stood his ground while the Power Stone on the Infinity Gauntlet kept on shining. He held his arms out as the Minotaur was about to be upon him.

One of the spear-like bony protrusions of the monster were aimed at the human's heart when they suddenly stopped. Sean had grabbed the beast's horns in his hands while the Minotaur struggled to continue its charge. But it couldn't move an inch and the more attempts it made to take even a single step, the more the rage inside it kept building.

Sean's grip doubled as he effortlessly started spinning in place with the Minotaur flailing in the air. Sean sped up in his spinning and then he finally let go, causing the monster to fly toward the wall and crash into it. The minotaur slid to the ground and tried to get back up, dazed from the hit. But Sean quickly ran to the monster and punched on the top of its head, knocking it unconscious.

"Sweet dreams!" Sean told the minotaur. But his fun was short-lived when the cave started to rumble and rocks started to drop from the ceiling.

**"Seems that the minotaur's collision with the wall has caused the cave's structural integrity to destabilize." **Thoth analyzed the situation.

"Fantastic." Sean remarked. The Space Stone illuminated and he waved his hand behind himself, creating a portal that revealed the outside of the cave. Sean then ran through the portal and avoided a large boulder that would've crushed him.

Sean looked around and found himself at the entrance of the minotaur's cave. He looked back inside the hollow, wondering about the state of the Minotaur.

"Think it's dead?" Sean asked.

**"No. I can still feel its life force. It's just unconscious." **Yama answered.

**"Minotaurs are resilient creatures, not to mention stubborn. Once it regains consciousness, it'll probably try to find you and attempt to kill you again."** Thoth added. His host hummed in acknowledgement as he thought of a way to prolong the monster's return. He soon had an idea on how to do so when he realized the Minotaur's situation.

"In that case, I'll just have to make it hard for it to get out of there." Sean walked a few steps inside and approached the wall. The Power Stone radiated its light again as its user pulled back his fist and punched the wall in front of him.

The resulting shockwaves caused the entrance ceiling to crack and crumble. Little by little, the broken-off pieces of stone started to drop to the floor of the cave until the cave's mouth was completely sealed off.

"There! That should keep him occupied for a while." Sean said as he dusted off his hands and made another portal with the Space Stone that led him to the bottom of the mountain.

"Well, that was eventful." Sean described his experience in the minotaur's cave.

**"What you call 'eventful', I call 'disappointing'. I can't believe that overgrown cow was so weak."** Heimdall groaned, saddened about finding the monster lacking from the expectations he had set on it.

"That's what happens when you get your hopes up." Sean quipped to the Norse god. His attention turned to the Time Stone occupant.

"And you were actually worried, Chronos. That minotaur was such a pushover." he told the Grecian god.

**"You should've just killed it." **Chronos critically told his host while ignoring the human's brushing off of his worries. Sean just rolled his eyes from Chronos's dodging of his retort.

"Well, I was the one intruding in its home. I know I would be angry if someone broke into my home. Besides, even if it did want to kill me, it'll have to dig its way out of its own cave and track me down in this forest to do so. I'm sure that by the time it gets out, I'll be long gone. And if it does find me, that's when I'll kill it for sure." Sean said while trying to relax at the tree.

After a few minutes of rest, Sean got off the ground, dusted off the dirt on his pants and gazed upon the enormous spire of earth before him. Decided to get a better lay of the land than the tree he had used earlier, Sean then created another portal to the mountain summit.

**XXXXX**

The human emerged from the other side of the glowing blue doorway he had made. He now stood on the pure white snowy summit of the mountains. Sean looked down the mountain and saw that the peak was a lot higher up than he expected.

"Whoo! That is brisk!" Sean exclaimed as he started feeling the chill of the cold air that sustained the snow that covered the ground he stood on. He blew his warm breath against his frigid hands and vigorously rubbed them together, trying to heat them up with the friction. He knew it wasn't enough and decided to bundle up.

With the Reality Stone now active, he held his left hand out, willed the snow to rise into the air and it began to converge onto Sean's body. Overlying itself on his shirt, the frozen water vapor started to turn itself into cloth and fiber. The same went for his pants as his clothes became thicker and his body felt, ironically, warmer. His head was also affected by the snow as it too covered his hair. It even spread to his hands, shrouding them completely.

The snow stopped flowing onto Sean and the remaining amounts fell back to the ground. Sean was now outfitted with a heavy winter coat, thick-layered sweatpants and gloves, topping the ensemble off with a beanie that covered his head down to his ears. All in black. The only article of clothing that remained the same was his brown boots. Luckily, they were waterproof so they would keep the snow from melting and seeping through on his feet.

"That's better!" Sean happily commented on his newly acquired clothing and warmth.

Moving to the back of the mountain, he found his movement was slightly hindered due to the breadth of his recently created attire. But it didn't prevent him from walk normally, just slowed him down a little.

When he saw the area behind the mountain, Sean saw more mountains decorating the landscape. Some taller, some smaller, there were even some that had more snow covering the one he was standing on.

But the most peculiar was that when he looked down, he saw plenty more snow spreading all across the ground. He thought it was weird how he had arrived at a place where one place would look like it was in one season and the one next to it was in another. Then again, Sean figured that it wasn't _that_ strange with everything that he's dealt with in the past few weeks.

He couldn't remember the last time had seen snow. His old hometown barely had any snow for as long as he lived there. In winter times, he would never see so much as a snowflake for years at a time. And even when he did, the snow would melt away in just a day or two.

"Well, might as well have some fun in the snow while I have the chance." Sean said to himself, seizing the opportunity to have some snow-time looked down to see that the snow extended down the slope of the stone elevation. Further down, near the base, trees were scattered around the entire area. However, they weren't too dense for what Sean had in mind.

"Alright! Just need one last thing." Sean told himself before taking out his Infinity Gauntlet with the Reality Stone shining again. The snow was floating towards Sean's hand once more, only it was just his hand this time.

The snow started to change form, starting from the palm of Sean's open fist. He felt the cold wetness of the chilled precipitation through his gloves before the clump became rope inside his hand. As the snow continued to meld together, its entire being began to change as well. The fragile frozen particles of water soon became rigid as plastic. The color soon turned black so it could be easily found among the stark white terrain. Its size and shape got bigger and rounder until the object in Sean's hand was finally completed. The newly made item in Sean's hand was a large saucer sled, ready to ride.

"This is gonna be fun!" Sean said excitedly about sledding down the slopes of the snowy mountain. He broke out into a running start and jumped into the air while placing the saucer sled underneath himself.

"WHOOOO-HOO-HOO-HOO-HOOOOOOO!" Sean hollered out as he rode his plastic disc-shaped sled down the mountain.

The cold air blew against his face, his speed picking up with every few feet he traveled. Sean started swerving to avoid crashing into the trees that would've impeded his run with just a few seconds of broken concentration.

He decided that he wanted some more thrills, so he used the Reality Stone to manipulate the snow and formed a ramp a little ahead of him. He smiled in anticipation as the sled reached the base of the upward slope and the momentum carried the human through the air.

Unfortunately, due to his wet gloves, Sean lost his grip on the handles of his sled. He tried to grab it, but his fingers only pushed the disc further away from him. At the top of the arc of his launch, gravity soon took control of Sean's body and started plummeting down to the ground.

As he saw the end of his descent rapidly approaching, Sean willed the Power Stone to activate. And a few seconds later, he crashed right into the ground face-first. The snow that covered his impact point gave way under Sean's body, leaving an imprint of his body when he entered the snow.

"Well, that was fun!" Sean gleefully commented as he lifted himself off the ground and shook his head, flinging any snow that was still clinging to him. He dusted off more snow off the rest of his body while the Power Stone's glow dissipated.

After he finished, he noticed that the wind was picking up and blowing against him. The sudden wind chill made him shiver and covered his hands between his underarms to keep them from freezing.

"Now where did-" Sean asked out loud as he looked around the area, only to turn behind him and have the missing item he was looking for get blown by the wind and smacked him on the side of his face.

"There it is." Sean groaned out as he rubbed out the pain in his cheek. The large plastic disc was now planted into the snow at an angle so it wouldn't get blown away again. The American picked up the sled and pinned it under his arm. He decided to go on another rider down the mountain, only he chose to start just a little ways up the slope. So instead of using the Space Stone, he started to walk up to a suitable starting point.

**"So..."** Morrigan suddenly spoke to Sean.

"So what?" Sean asked the Celtic goddess, the sound of his every step crunching the snow beneath him.

**"So you seem to be getting a little more attention from Akeno. I guess you made a real impression on her during the dodgeball game."**

**"Not to mention that she's even started flirting with you. Granted, Fallen Angels are naturally seductive. You even got to feel those nice tits she's got!"** Izanagi added his own lewd observations, finally recovered from the low blow Izanami gave him.

**"Despite Izanagi's 'color commentary', it does look like you caught her eye. But the real questions are, 'How do you feel about that? and 'What is your opinion of Akeno?'"** Izanami brought up the point of their discussion.

Sean stopped and thought about what the Shinto goddess said to him. The subject of love was something that he never thought of before. Sean sighed and gave the most honest answer he could think of.

"I don't know. I mean, I never thought that I would actually have a chance with any kind of girl today after all the crap I dealt with back in America." Sean's mood suddenly turned somber, recalling all of the abuse that he took from the other kids before he awakened the Infinity Gauntlet.

**"You need to leave all of that behind you. Your past shouldn't rule your present or, even more importantly, your future."** Chronos told the young human.

Sean snickered at what the Time Stone dweller had said as he continued his trek up the slope. "Was that supposed to be a joke or helpful advice?"

Chronos, however, didn't smile at his host's attempt to find humor in his own wisdom. **"Don't make light of someone who's trying to help you."**

"Yeah, yeah. Thanks, Chronos." Sean gave his appreciation at the time deity's words.

**"And what about Akeno?" **Morrigan reminded her host about the other subject in question.

Sean's thoughts turned to the hybrid girl as he remembered when they first met. The smile and grace she had was extremely attractive. How she used her powerful thunder magic on Viser and the absolute pleasure she gained from the Stray's pain gave her a look that was very alluring to the human.

"Well, she's definitely beautiful. She seems friendly and kind. Not to mention that she can be a force to be reckoned with, if her handling that Stray Devil from before is anything to go on."

**"Oooh! So you prefer powerful women, huh~?"** the Power Stone occupant playfully asked.

**"That hybrid girl is definitely strong. She actually reminds me of a Valkyrie that I once was involved with. Only she wasn't really into the fighting the way your crush is."** Heimdall told Sean of his own love life.

"_You_ had a girlfriend, Heimdall?" Sean questioned the Norse god with astonishment.

**"Yes. Why do you ask?" **the Norse god replied plainly.

"Well... you just seemed like you were all business the whole time I knew you. Never thought that you actually had anyone like that."

**"I may have been the watchful guardian of the Bifrost Bridge, but I was also a mighty warrior of Asgard! Many women always tried to gain my attention, but that Valkyrie wasn't like the droves that idolized me. No, she was magnificent! She was an expert with magic to complement my physical prowess when we fought together! A fearless Magician who would stand her ground against even the most formidable of Asgard's enemies!" **Sean simply let Heimdall recount his moments with the Valkyrie as he reached an acceptable height to start his next run.

_**AWOOOOOOOOOOO!**_ a howl echoed out from the base of the mountain. Sean used the Mind Stone to enhance his vision and looked down to find the source. He soon found it: a pack of large gray wolves, about ten of them. But what was most concerning is that the entire pack was chasing down their prey, and it seemed like it was a girl.

She was a young-looking girl, physically a teenager by human standards. She had pure alabaster skin that made her look like she was made from fine china with light purple shoulder-length hair, her eyes were particularly peculiar as they were light blue but her pupils were a darker blue rather than the usual black.

Even though the air and environment were at sub-freezing temperatures, she was dressed rather lightly in a pure white kimono that reached down to right above her knees to allow easier movement through the snow and the garb was wrapped in a pink obi.

She was running from the wolves as they hunted her down relentlessly. However, she wasn't as helpless as she seemed. The purple-haired girl looked over her shoulder to see that one of the wolves was rushing ahead of its pack. She quickly turned around and thrusted her arm out toward the lone canine. But it managed to jump out of the way just in time while the girl turned back and ran without breaking her stride.

**"Not smart, turning her back on those wolves like that."** Heimdall commented on the girl's predicament.

"Better get down there before she gets mauled to death." Sean said, determined to stop the lupine predators. The Space Stone shined and he created a portal that led back to the mountain's base.

Sean stepped through the portal to see that the wolf pack was starting to catch up to the girl. She tripped and fell down into the snow. Turning her head, she saw the dire wolf that sprinted ahead of its pack about to be right on top of her. It leaped with its mouth open, preparing to dig its teeth into her flesh. Scared that her life was about to end, the girl covered her head and waited for the inevitable.

Sean, however, had different plans. With the Time Stone now shimmering, the dire wolf pouncing toward the girl froze in mid-air as time stopped. Its packmates were right behind it as Sean made his way over to the spot where the girl had tripped. The human picked up the girl and set her further away from the attacking canine while Sean stood in its way. The human used the Time Stone to slowly move time forward. As he did, Sean pushed the airborne wolf back toward its pack before bringing time back to full speed.

The wolf flew back and collided with one of its brethren, bringing them both to the ground. The rest of the pack stopped and saw that another being had suddenly appeared. While that happened, the girl behind Sean felt nothing as she waited for her demise. She took her arms away from her head and looked to see a boy around her age standing between her and the dire wolves. She didn't know where he came from, but she was glad that he was here.

"Are you alright?" Sean asked the downed girl while facing toward the dire wolf pack.

"Y-Yes." the girl replied nervously as her fear was still present with the pack of predators setting their sights on this strange new boy.

**"That's right, Sean. Don't turn your back on them. They'll see it as a sign of weakness." **Heimdall told his host. Sean was silent as he stood his ground against the canines. The girl was surprised to hear another voice speak. She looked around to find the source, but the only things that were here were the boy and the pack.

The dire wolves growled at the new target that presented itself to them. This new person was not intimidated by their vocal warning as he continued to stand between them and the girl. Sean meanwhile crouched down to the ground while keeping his eyes on his feral opponents. He picked up some snow with his left hand and used the Reality Stone to transform it into a sharp hunting dagger. He then rose up and crouched into a defensive stance, preparing himself for an attack.

Seeing this as a sign of aggression, two dire wolves then charged towards Sean. Using the Power Stone, Sean grabbed the closest wolf that lunged at him and stabbed it in its neck, the blood spraying out and splashing onto Sean's face. Noticing another one trying to attack his vulnerable side, he shielded himself with the already dead wolf in his hand and brought them both down in front of him. While the live animal was defenseless, Sean then stabbed the knife into its eye and it died instantly. Now it was 8-1.

Sean then felt something on his shoulder and saw that one of the beasts managed to flank him to bite into his shoulder. Fortunately, the jacket's padding was thick enough to protect the human from its fangs. Sean reached over, grabbed the wolf by its fur and flung the wolf off of his body and into a tree, causing snow to fall from the branches above. A sickening snap and a loud yelp indicated that the impact caused some of the lupine predator's bones to break. It just laid there, panting heavily and whimpering in pain while it started to bleed from its mouth. But its breathing soon became shallow and stopped altogether. The count then became 7-1.

**"Sean! Are you OK?!"** Morrigan called out to him in worry.

"I'm fine. Good thing this jacket's so thick. Besides, they can't hurt me anyway." Sean assured his mother figure.

**"Doesn't mean I can't worry about you."** Morrigan countered as her host remained focused on the battle.

The dire wolves were starting to become hesitant as they underestimated the human. Their ears started to droop in submission after seeing nearly half of the pack be taken out their prey of one, but they kept low to the ground, their fangs still bared as the dire wolves started to skulk back and forth across Sean's eyesight while keeping their own sights on the human.

Suddenly, two of the dire wolves in front of Sean rushed the human. One of them was trailing behind the other as the leading wolf lunged at the human. Sean held up his left arm to protect his face from the beast's fangs. However, the second didn't follow its packmate.

Instead, it was heading for the girl! Sean cursed himself for not realizing; it seemed that these wolves were smarter than he thought. The girl's eyes widened when she saw the second wolf charge toward the easier target.

Thinking quickly, Sean activated the Mind Stone as he looked at the second wolf. His brain was racing with calculations on the running speed of the wolf and the distance between them. After that, Sean switched the knife in his left hand to his right and threw the weapon at the canine.

The dagger flew through the air and pierced its neck just before the wolf could pounce onto the helpless girl. The now dead canine fell limp and its carcass slid from the momentum of its run with a trail of blood painting its tread in the snow.

Back to Sean, with that dirty tactic, he had enough of this fight. Directing his anger to the wolf still gnawing away at his arm with the Power Stone active, he grabbed the dog by the neck and suddenly snapped it in two, killing it. Reaching out behind with his open right hand and the Mind Stone now functioning, the knife that was embedded in the dire wolf that tried to attack the girl flew out of the lupine corpse and into Sean's waiting hand.

The final five dire wolves of the pack stood still as their numbers diminished fast. Their ears drooped flat against their heads and their tails fell down between their legs. All of their hunting spirit had left them as the human stood tall. Sean's eyes showed burning anger, glaring at the opportunistic mutts that tried to get one over on him.

One of the more apprehensive wolves took a step back and Sean narrowed his eyes at its act of self-preservation.

Without wasting any more energy, Sean activated the Time Stone, freezing the mongrels in place. Sean then stomped over to them and stabbed them all in the top of their skulls, one by one, until they were all dead. But with the Time Stone still active, they could only stay standing, unaware of their demises that have already transpired. Sean returned to the spot he stood right before he stopped time.

The Time Stone stopped glowing and time went on at its normal speed. With time now resuming, the effects of Sean's stabbing were apparent as all of the remaining dire wolves' heads suddenly burst out blood like fountains and dropped dead instantly.

Sean sighed and relaxed his body as the fight was now over. Touching his cheek with his hand, he looked at his fingers to see that he still had blood on his face. Using the Reality Stone again, the blood that was on his face and clothes started to turn to dust. Looking at the shoulder where the dire wolf bit him, he saw that some of the insulation was puffed out from the tears that the canine's fangs caused. Placing his hand on his shoulder, he wiped it across the cuts and they disappeared. The shoulder of his jacket looked as good as new.

The American turned around to see the girl seemingly unharmed. She only watched in awe of the efficiency of the boy's defense. He was outnumbered ten to one and he killed them all without much difficulty. Not only that but after he killed the dire wolf that tried to kill her, the rest of the pack simply died while he stood there. Like he just wished for them to die.

"Are you OK?" Sean asked the girl, snapping her out of her stupor. She quickly picked herself off the ground and ran to hide behind the closest tree she could find.

_**"She must still be in shock from the near-death experience. I also sense some fear towards you. Try being gentle with your words."**_Thoth judged based on her behavior. Sean nodded at the Egyptian god's advice.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you." he tried to placate the girl but she didn't move from behind the tree. She simply stood by her hiding spot to only show the left half of her body as she kept looking at Sean. The human sweatdropped from the girl's lack of response.

"Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?" Sean repeated his earlier question to the girl. Only this time, he did get a response. A nod of her head. The human sighed in relief when he saw her visual answer.

"That's good." he said. "Well, I have to get going. Stay safe!" Sean waved at the girl and took his leave. As he walked away, the girl would only stare at him. Then Sean used the Space Stone to create a portal to the warmer side of the mountain and vanished right before the girl's eyes.

**XXXXX**

Emerging from the other side of the portal, Sean had arrived back at the forest area. Red sky, dead black trees, and dirt all around him. Not to mention the higher temperatures. With the Reality Stone, Sean turned all the additional clothes he made earlier to dust, leaving him with his original attire. He let of a sigh of relief from the release of his trapped body heat, feeling himself cool down. His glasses soon fogged up from the sudden change of tempurature, so he took them off and wiped them dry with the sleeve of his shirt. After a few wipes, his glasses were now clear and he placed them back on his face.

"Man, that was great! All things considered, I had fun!" Sean said out loud with a smile on his face. He started walking through the forest once again to warm up the colder parts of his body.

**"I'm glad to hear it, Sean. It's always wonderful to see you in such high spirits!"** Morrigan chimed, delighted that her host was enjoying himself.

"So, Heimdall, did you like that ten-on-one fight?"

**"Well, it lasted longer than the minotaur. It was better, I can say that much."** the Norse god begrudgingly answered.

**"You spend all your time wishing for a fight. Now that you get one, or two in this case, you just complain?"** Thoth wondered about the Space Stone occupant's griping.

**"The exhilaration of a fight is in the spirits of the fighters! You can't get that from a one-sided bout like those! Not that I would expect someone like you to understand, Thoth." **Heimdall argued about his displeasure.

**"What I don't understand is why you find fighting to be fun."**

**"I'm not going to explain myself to someone who refuses to back his words with action."**

"Knock it off, guys!" Sean shouted at the bickering deities. They ceased their dispute with Heimdall going back to his weapons and Thoth going into his library to find another book to read.

**"Those two, I swear."** Morrigan sighed out while placing her hand on her cheek.

"Tell me about it. One minute, they're friendly to each other. And the next, they're at each other's throats. Well, at least they don't fight as much as Izanagi and Izanami do." Sean replied with a shrug of his shoulders. The human let out a long yawn as he was starting to feel tired from the fighting he did in combination of the lack of sleep he was getting.

"Man, ever since I started dealing with Rias and her crap, I've been getting less and less sleep. I'm just glad I can take tomorrow off of school." Sean yawned out while trying to shake off his drowsiness.

**"I can see how it would affect you, being a human involving himself with beings of the night like Devils, but it was your own decision to come here."** Heimdall pointed out.

Sean groaned at his lecture. "I know, Heimdall."

**"If you really want to be more alert in the future, then start going to bed earlier."**

Sean sighed out in frustration at the Norse god's chiding and just let it go in stride. He took another look around his surroundings because of his conversation with the gods caused him to be absentminded of his environment. Sean was now in a more lively part of the forest, green leaves and more brownish bark, in contrast of the usual black and dead he first saw in the Forest. The human's stamina was reaching its last legs, so he decided to find a resting spot to catch his breath. He found a tree that was larger than the other ones around it.

**"So Sean, what did you think about that girl? She looked pretty cute."** Izanagi suddenly brought up.

Sean simply ignored the perverted Shinto god and focused on recovering his stamina. The minutes passed by as the human relaxed next to his arboreal resting place. After hearing about her from Izanagi, he started thinking back to the girl. He had hoped that she would be safe after dispatching that dire wolf pack. She was rather cute in Sean's eyes, but she didn't seem like much of a talker. Sean may not like to socialize, but he at least spoke when spoken to.

"Who dares come to my forest?!" an irritated voice rang out through the air. Sean's head snapped up and scanned the territory for the source.

Feeling the tree he was resting on move, Sean sprang up from his spot and faced the now active tree. The bark suddenly split open to reveal someone inside. It was a buxom woman seemed like a plant-human hybrid with green hair that looked as though it was made from leaves, her arms and legs seemed like they were made out of bark and her clothing appeared as though it was made out of the foliage around them, but it didn't cover much. Only just enough that she was considered somewhat decent, leaves covering her nipples and womanhood.

This plant-woman emerged from her tree and noticed Sean standing before her. She examined the human with scrutiny, her eyes never leaving his form as she glared at him for his intrusion. Although, her piercing look soon began to soften as she felt the power that seemed to emanate from Sean.

The woman began to approach the American. Sean himself tensed up for another fight. The two beings now stood face-to-face with each other. Neither one of them said a word; the plant woman still gazing upon Sean while Sean simply stood there with the Gauntlet active and Power Stone glowing in case of an up-close attack.

The American's worries were increased when the plant-woman raised her hand and reached out towards him. Sean stood his ground, preparing for the fight that would soon break out. However, what he expected to be a slap of aggression turned out to be a gentle caress of his cheek. He looked to the plant-woman and saw that she was smiling pleasantly at him, which only befuddled Sean.

"Well, what an unexpected surprise. You don't seem like the usual Devils that skulk around my forest." she said.

Sean's bewilderment only grew from the plant-woman's words. One minute, she looked like she was going to attack him and the next, here she was, looking at Sean with endearing eyes and rather loving demeanor. She removed her hand from the human's cheek but kept her current distance, which was a little too close for Sean to his discomfort and hormonal delight.

_**"Sean, you lucky bastard! You actually found a dryad!"**_ Izanagi shouted in envious ire.

_"Dryad? Those are the spirits inside trees, right?"_

_**"Yes, though they're called "nymphs". And I'm sure that the only reason Izanagi knew that is because that dryads and other nymphs have a reputation for seducing gods." **_Thoth thoroughly elucidated.

_"Not surprising, given Izanagi's... traits."_

"You should be more careful. If I had been anything else, you would've been killed."

Sean blinked out of his mental talk and shook his head to bring himself back to reality. He took a step back from the dryad to regain his personal space. "Thanks for the advice. Don't worry, I'm just passing through here. I'll be out of your forest after I get some rest."

The dryad's smile soon turned somber after hearing that Sean wouldn't be in her forest for long. In the short time that she felt his presence, she sensed some kind of energy that she couldn't help but be attracted to. Though, hearing that he would stay until he recovered filled her with hope.

"Then, allow me to give you something that can help you get your energy back." the dryad offered. She wasted not time as she approached Sean and did something that the human never expected.

The dryad was kissing him with her hands on his cheeks, keeping him near. With that, Sean snapped his eyes wide open to see that the dryad was kissing him with her hands on his cheeks, keeping him near. The plant-woman's large breasts pressed up against the human's chest from their close proximity. His face started to burn from the experience as he continued to feel the lustful actions of the dryad. Her tongue was licking between his lips. Sean opened them out of reflex and the dryad's appendage soon invaded the inside of his mouth, shocking the human even more.

Not long after, a sweet-tasting liquid started to enter Sean's mouth as well. He swallowed the substance to avoid choking on it. The more he devoured the fluid, the more energetic he became. A few more seconds later, the Dryad removed her tongue from the human's mouth with a strand of saliva that was colored a light amber.

The strand broke from the human and the dryad as they moved away from each other. Sean wiped off the saliva from his mouth while the plant-woman seemed to be assessing the taste of it with her eyes closed. She let out a dreamy and content sigh as she opened her eyes again, her face in ecstasy from kissing Sean.

"That was wonderful! So, how do you feel?" the dryad asked Sean.

He tried to respond, but he couldn't even form a coherent thought from what had just happened to him. He took a deep breath to calm himself down, in more ways than one. After a few seconds of deep breathing, Sean finally managed to regain his composure to properly answer the plant-woman.

"I feel... better. What was that you made me drink?" Sean asked.

"That was my nectar; it helps revitalize the body." the dryad replied.

Sean did feel the effects of the nectar. His body felt lighter and sprier even more than before he first entered the Forest. It was a similar sensation from when he absorbed the light spear attack from Raynare, Kalawarner, and Mittelt.

"Well, thank you very much for that." Sean said with awkward gratitude. "But I have to get going." With that, Sean turned on his heel and started walking away from the tree sprite.

However, he was soon stopped by a pressure around his ankle and a light tugging that kept him in place. He looked down to see that a thick vine had wrapped around his ankle. The ground behind it had been hollowed upward and it trailed back to the dryad and her tree.

The dryad herself was holding her hand up toward Sean and brought it down. Smiling sweetly, she sauntered over to him with a noticeable sway of her hips. Sean couldn't help but admire the hypnotic allure of her movements. He quickly shook his head to snap himself out of his hormonal trance. The tree nymph stood in front of the human with her sweet smile still on her face. She leaned in closer to Sean's face. He could feel her large breasts pushing against his own chest again when her mouth reached his ear.

"Do you really have to go?" the dryad wistfully whispered. Sean's face burned red from feeling her warm breath against his ear. He audibly gulped from the intense moment as he felt his heart pounding against his chest.

"Y-Yes. I need to go back home to the human world." Sean tried to tell the nymph but couldn't stop the stutter that escaped his mouth. He internally cursed himself from that. Why was it that he could kill someone like Dohnaseek, but when it came to moments like this, he would lose his composure?

The dryad pulled her head away from the human's ear and pouted that he was being difficult. And the fact that he lived in the human world didn't help matters at all. Dryads don't like being in the human world because of the lack of nature. No trees to tend to, no flowers to bloom, no fresh air to breathe in. She didn't want to lose the interesting boy that came to her forest. But then her pout became a sultry smile as an idea came to her.

"Why not stay with me?" she proposed. "I have plenty of land. There are lots of fruit-bearing trees and a nearby lake for food and water. And best of all, we'll have it all to ourselves." As she listed off the positives of her home, she soon started daydreaming about Sean staying with her.

Meanwhile, Sean was trying to get away from the dryad without harming her. She was being very persistent and while he was flattered that he would receive such an offer, he still didn't want to stay in here longer than he had to.

**"I've had about enough of this tree tramp!" **Morrigan irately fumed at the stubborn dryad. With every pushy advance the spirit made, her anger grew stronger until she wanted nothing more than to emerge from the Power Stone and burn her to cinders for tempting her host with her slutty antics. The nymph jumped back at the sharp voice that insulted her.

The momentary distraction gave Sean the opportunity he needed. With the Power Stone active, his strength increased dramatically and pulled his captured leg as hard as he could. The vine easily snapped from the quick tug and Sean's ankle was freed.

"AAAHH!" the dryad screamed as she cringed in anguish. Sean looked between the vine and the nymph; it seemed like she felt the pain from the snapping of the root. But he didn't want to wait around to find out. Changing from Power to Space, he created a portal and quickly ran through it with the portal closing right behind him.

The dryad, recovering quickly from her phantom pain, looked up to see that the boy had disappeared. She soon became depressed as she went back to her tree.

"Oh, I miss him already." the nymph sighed out. "He certainly was cute. And from his reactions, he's probably never been with a woman before." She licked her lips from the idea of being with the human again.

However, as she began to daydream about Sean once more, the air suddenly got colder by the second. The dryad started to shiver and it only grew more violently with the temperature continuously dropped. She even began to see snow falling around her forest. But that was impossible given the normal warm temperatures of the forest.

_"How dare you try to sink your roots into him, you plant whore."_ a voice said to the dryad in the coldest tone of voice she had ever heard.

And then, all was white.

**And that's it for now! I'll start working on the second part when I can. I was originally going to do this as one whole chapter, but the word count would've past 20,000 words and I'm also posting this on Wattpad. I didn't want it to be too much of a chapter!**

**And as for the poll, I'm going to keep the result a secret! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**

**I enjoy your frustration and anticipation! Though, I'm not a total sadist. I will feel bad about delaying for too long like before.**

**One last thing, I want to thank all the readers that helped this story reach 700 followers and 600 favorites! I honestly never imagined that this story would be so popular! I hope that you'll continue to read my story!**

**Anyway, you all know what to do!**

**Follow/Fav/Review**

**See you all next time! And hopefully, it won't be another five months!**


	12. Chapter 12: Familiar Territory (Part 2)

**Hey everybody! Yes, it's me! I've returned!**

**OK, I want to say that I'm not going to quit writing! Hooray! After I sent out that annoucement, I got all of the frustration out of me. I appreciate everyone that gave me some advice on how to deal with it. So now, I will repay you all and everyone else with this new chapter!**

**I'll be honest. With all of the interruptions that I had to deal with, I'm not very confident about this chapter. So I hope that you'll all enjoy it anyway.**

**One last thing! At the end of the story, please AND I CAN'T STRESS THIS ENOUGH BECAUSE IT'S INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT TO ME, please read the A/N at the end of this chapter! I'm serious.**

**Now let's get to those reviews!**

**Dragonsayianblue: Yep. You'll see soon enough. Hmm, that would seem like a good idea. But I'll see about that when I get there.**

**emoryjmorrill, RTNK: Thanks!**

**OechsnerC: Well, that's DxD for ya!**

**Vizard Masky: You'll just have to read and find out.**

**GrimmjowTaichou: I have toyed with the notion of making omakes for this story. And I did come up with a few, but we're not that far into the story to make them effectively funny.**

**plums: I'm not trying to do that to him. I'll keep your critique under advisement.**

**Not a lot of reviews came in, despite the long gap between chapters. I know that they're our other ones. But remember, I ONLY RESPOND TO REVIEWS FROM THE LAST CHAPTER! ANY REVIEWS POSTED ON EARLIER ONES WILL NOT BE ACKNOWLEDGED!**

**Now let's get to it!**

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**I'm serious about the A/N at the end. Please read it.**

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**I know you're trying to scroll down past these, but I'd really appreciate it if you read the ending A/N. Ok, enough of that. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 12: Familiar Territory (Part 2)**

Sean emerged from the other end of the portal. His face's hue was now reduced to a light pink after recovering his wits from the overtly amorous dryad. He couldn't believe that any girl or woman would just outright make out with him in the first few minutes of the first meeting.

**"I can't believe you, Sean! There she was, a sexy dryad that was offering herself to you! And you just run away?!"** Izanagi incredulously berated his host.

**"Damn it, Izanagi! How many times do I have to-"** Izanami started laying into her husband.

**"Izanagi."** a calm but furious Morrigan said simply to the Shinto god, sending a chill down his spine that was colder than even his own wife had ever given him.

**"Normally, I would let Izanami deal with your perversions because they've been mostly harmless. However, if they ever find their way into Sean's thoughts especially towards a shameless harlot like that dryad..."**

Morrigan stared down the creation god with the same glare that Sean had whenever he used the Power Stone. Her sclera completely black like an endless abyss with only glowing purple irises alight as if they were the flames of her burning rage. **"You'll wish that Izanami had punished you."**

Both of the Reality Stone occupants were flabbergasted with the amount of malice that Morrigan was projecting. It was obvious to all the gods that she was protective of Sean, but she never once had threatened any of the others with such malevolence.

Izanagi started sweating bullets from the Celtic goddess' threat. He didn't, or rather couldn't, say a word. Izanami was stupefied, she never thought that Morrigan would ever threaten any of them like she did.

"Alright. I think it's time I joined back up with the others." Sean said to the gods, breaking them out of the tense situation.

**"Yes, that would be wise."** Chronos agreed with his host's thinking.

Sean then activated the Power Stone to feel out the demonic energies of the ORC. Soon after, he found the Devils and thankfully, they weren't that far away. Sean started to make his way towards them, but as he got closer, he felt another smaller yet familiar energy signature next to them.

"AAH!" Sean flinched in surprise as a scream rang out through the trees ahead of him. Wasting no more time, he ran right toward the source of the shriek. Effortlessly weaving through the trees, Sean could feel the ORC's energy steadily getting closer.

"Hey, I heard someone-" Sean called out to the Devils when he emerged from the treeline. But when he saw the group, he was dumbfounded by what he had just seen.

From head to toe, all of the girls of the ORC were covered in some kind of green slime and their clothes were dissolving. Patches of skin were showing through their ever smaller uniforms and it also looked like that not even their bras or panties were spared by the creature.

"Aah~!" Sean then heard another sound coming from the girls. Although, the sound he heard didn't seem like it was a scream of shock and embarrassment. To his ears, it sounded more like a moan of pleasure and arousal. Looking through the girls' expressions, he found the most likely source: Akeno. She had a closed-eyed smile on her face as she continued to moan from the slime's ever increasing pressure around her arms. Her school uniform was completely gone, her bra was reduced to mere straps of lace, bouncing freely as she kept struggling against the slime, and her panties seemed mostly intact.

Sean audibly swallowed the lump in his throat. His mind started to involuntarily run wild from the scene he was beholding. The Queen opened her eyes to see the human standing in shock at the display.

"Do you like what you see, Harris~?" Akeno asked with her eyes half-lidded and a sultry smile, which made her look even sexier in Sean's eyes. The rest of the girls suddenly looked over to see the human staring at their slimy, progressively naked bodies.

Rias seemed to be more concerned with getting the slime off her than Sean being able to see her naked body. Asia tried to cover herself, but the slime prevented her from doing so. Koneko turned away while looking over her shoulder and glaring at the human.

_**"LOOK AWAY!"**_ Izanami suddenly shouted from inside her host's mind, snapping Sean out of his revelry and making him realize the full situation.

Sean quickly looked away to see that the guys were safe from the situation and the human said a silent "thanks" for that. It seemed that the only damage that the slime did to them was covering Kiba and Zatouji's eyes while Issei was covering a nosebleed from witnessing the display of forceful stripping.

"This is the best thing that's ever happened!" Issei commented through his hand. However, his admiration of the scene was interrupted by a swift fist to the face, courtesy of Koneko.

"Go die, you perv." she coolly yet angrily told the Devil lecher. Though, it didn't seem to damper Issei's spirits as the smile on his face never wavered, even if he just received a Rook strong punch to his cheek.

"That was totally worth it!" Issei said to himself with perverted glee from his position, lying on his back on the ground.

_**"So Sean, did you enjoy seeing Akeno so vulnerable and enjoying herself when that slime melted her clothes? Because I know I did! Oh man! You really do know how to pick them!"**_ Izanagi cheered his host for his unexpected luck and prime choice in women.

_**"Dammit Izanagi! I'm sick of you and your disgusting habits!"**_ Izanami irately scolded her husband as she pinched and pulled his cheek to the point that it looked like she would rip it off Izanagi's face. And for good measure, the Shinto goddess shook the perverted god's face which only served to amplify the pain.

"The slime's tying up my hands! I can't use my magic like this!" Rias cried out as the jelly-like monster wrapped itself around the Devil's arms.

"Me neither! What are we gonna do?!" Akeno exclaimed along with her King.

"Don't worry, I'll save you!" Issei yelled out. Only he wasn't in any rush to do what he said he was going to do.

"But first, I have to burn this moment into my brain!" the Pawn said to himself. Sean meanwhile gained a tic mark of irritation from hearing that his hormones were controlling his actions yet again.

He looked over to Kiba to see what he would do, except that with the slime covering his eyes, he wasn't really up to the task. Instead, he was just swinging his sword haphazardly, desperately trying to destroy the slime that plagued his fellow peerage members.

"Eating off clothes is the random power of this weird slime. Fun for a while, but in the end, a complete and utter waste of time." Zatouji explained the ability of the stripping ooze.

"No way! That's all it does?!" Issei turned to the Familiar Master in excited disbelief. "I found it! I want this slime to be my familiar!" Another tic mark popped on Sean's head as he heard the perverted Devil shouted his desire of the slime to his King.

_"You've gotta be kidding! His friends are in trouble and he's just going to sit back and watch while slime strips all the girls down to nothing?! Hell, Kiba's being a danger to himself and the others right now, just blindly slashing the air around him, and he's not even lifting a finger to stop him!"_ Sean thought to himself of the disregard that Issei showed with incredulity.

_**"That disgusting pervert really is the worst! And you!"**_ Izanami fumed at the Pawn's usual high jinks and snapping at her husband before he could join the Devil in his ogling.

_**"If you so much as utter one depraved syllable, I'll cut off your dick and stick up your ass so you can literally go fuck yourself!"**_ the Shinto god of creation's face turned blue from the from the obscene punishment that his wife had envisioned for him. For the sake of himself, he wisely remained silent.

"The pain hurts so good, I might have to fight you for it~!" Akeno moaned out in painful pleasure. Sean nearly looked at the Queen in surprise from her sudden appreciation of the mucilaginous monster, but restrained himself due to her nude state.

"YES! With this slime by my side, every girl I see will instantly be naked!" Issei cheered with all the excitement he had from the thought of have the slime as his familiar.

"Issei, choosing a familiar is extremely important for Devils! At least give it some thought before you make a decision!" Rias screamed to her Pawn as she squirmed around, trying to free herself from the slime's hold on her.

"OK then!" Issei then closed his eyes in thought.

...

...

...

"Like I thought, this is the one I want!" Issei yelled out with conviction.

_"Alright, that's it!" _Sean had heard enough. With his Infinity Gauntlet stretched out and the Mind Stone activated, Sean turned to the girls and looked at the slime covering them. The slime was then pulled off their bodies and flew towards Sean's open Gauntlet-clad hand. In a few seconds, all of the slime was off of the girls and coalesced to an amorphous sphere of goo.

Afterwards, Sean quickly looked away from the girls and back to the guys of the group. He then moved his hand over to Kiba, who was still hacking away at the air, and Zatouji, who simply stood by Issei with his arms crossed. The slime that was covering their eyes soon peeled off their faces and joined with the orb floating above Sean's hand.

Rias and Koneko sighed in relief as they covered their breasts while Akeno did the same, but with a little disappointment. Issei, on the other hand, was elated that the human managed to collect his familiar.

"Awesome! Thanks a lot, Sean!" Issei gratefully said to the human. Sean then turned his eyes to Issei and smiled.

"Oh, don't thank me just yet." Sean told him, confusing Issei. The human then motioned his left arm to his right side and swiftly swiped it in the direction of the treetops, causing the mass of slime to be launched over the trees and far away from the group.

"NO! COME BACK!" Issei called out to the airborne monster and ran to the edge of the clearing. He then dropped to his knees in despair as the flying ball of slime disappeared from his sight.

"Ufufu, looks like he already became attached." Akeno cheerfully commented.

"Stupid pervert." Koneko gave her own typical thoughts on the Pawn.

Issei's sadness soon turned to anger as he got back on his feet and stomped over to the culprit of his now missing familiar.

"You bastard! You bring my familiar back right now!" Issei demanded with tears streamed down from his eyes, grabbing Sean by his collar and shaking him violently.

Sean's patience with the situation quickly reached its end, grabbing Issei's wrists tight enough to cause him to yelp in pain he lightly pushed Issei away just enough to make the Devil let go of the human and proceeded to punch him in the face. Issei fell to the ground while holding his nose in pain.

"First of all, don't you ever put your hands on me again! And second, I've had enough for one night and I want to go home." Sean angrily lectured the perverted Devil.

"Thank you for your assistance, Harris. Though, personally, I would've just burned it." Rias added while she, Akeno, and Koneko gathered around them while still covering their breasts.

"What?! Miss President, you really would've burned away my familiar?!" Issei asked with shock that his King would do something like that to him.

"That's the only thing to do with pests like that, Issei." Rias replied. The thought of something like the slime being around her irritated her to no end.

While this was happening, Asia was still in the grips of the slime, desperately struggling to break free. Rias looked over to see her in her state and lifted her hand with her Power of Destruction magic circle hovering over it. But before she could remove the slime, Issei ran as quick as he could and wrapped Asia in his arms to protect what little slime was left.

"Issei, stand aside." Rias told her Pawn.

"No! This slime was made for me! I'll never have to undress every girl I see with my eyes again with it by my side! Please don't kill it!" Issei pathetically yet passionately defended the monster that Asia was covered in. While all this happened, Asia smiled since her crush was inadvertently hugging her close to him.

"Man, you're hopeless." Sean sighed out from Issei's unbelievable capacity for lust.

"Yeah, he's way too into this stuff." Kiba agreed with the human.

"Never have I known a Devil that wants this forest's biggest pests. You should know, young boy, there's more to life than breasts." Zatouji told the slime-loving Devil.

"Issei has always been true to his greed, so he doesn't think properly." Rias said with a sad and somewhat pitiful expression. Issei stood his ground, unwilling to move in an effort to save the clothes-melting slime and make it his familiar. Just then, Sean could hear the sound of wings flapping overhead.

**SHOCK SHOCK SHOCK**

After that, with the sound of crackling a beam of blue lightning suddenly shot at the slime from above and caught Issei in the crossfire. The slime was reduced to a charred rock while Issei suffered a similar fate, only he was alive given the twitching of his smoking, electrified body. Asia, however, was remarkably unscathed even though the slime it destroyed was on her body.

Looking up, everyone saw a baby blue-scaled dragon flying in circles above their heads. Issei recuperated from the lightning attack and saw that the last pieces of slime had been destroyed. The Devil was figuratively shocked to see that his future familiar just went up in smoke.

"NO!" Issei cried as he picked up what was left of the slime he so vehemently tried to protect. Asia approached Issei to check on his well-being, but she felt something land on her shoulder. She turned to see that the baby dragon had chosen it as its perch.

_**"A baby male Sprite Dragon. It must've taken a liking to Asia and used its lightning to protect her from the slime. "**_ Thoth explained.

_"Well, lucky her."_ Sean replied.

_**"Just be careful, Sean. Male dragons hate other males. No doubt it'll attack you if you get too close to him or Asia."**_

_"Noted."_

Back to Issei, he could only mourn the smoldering remnants of the slime, his last chance of having his own perverted familiar stolen from him by the small dragon that hung from Asia's shoulder. First, Harris threw most of it away like garbage, and now, this dragon comes along and kills what's left of his dream familiar?!

The Pawn started to tremble with anger as he placed the scorched remains of his deceased would-be familiar and stood on his feet. He glared at the dragon in question with nothing but contempt.

"That slime was the best familiar I could ever find and you took him away from me! At least when Harris did it, he kept it alive! But what you just did was unforgivable!" Issei furiously ranted to the baby dragon. But the sprite dragon simply sighed as it got comfortable on Asia's shoulder.

A shallow aura started to envelope Issei's body. The intensity caused the other Devils to be pushed back from the enraged pervert. Sean however stood right where he was, unaffected by the violent aura from Issei.

_**"Oh, it seems like the dragon's been unleashed."**_ Morrigan commented on the Pawn's sudden burst.

_**"Though, he's being a bit childish. That dragon may have destroyed that slime, but it's only an infant. And he's going to take revenge against it?"**_ Thoth wondered with a bit of disbelief that Issei would be so petty as to retaliate against the draconic toddler.

Sean simply stood there as Issei approached the sprite dragon that was on Asia's shoulder. The fury that built up inside him was coming to a head as he reached over to the baby dragon. He would stop at nothing to enact righteous perverted vengeance! Not even Rias or Akeno!

"Don't bully him." Asia chastised Issei as she hugged the baby dragon. Issei suddenly froze in place before he had the tiny dragon in his hand. The way that the Bishop defended the little electric dragon made it sound like she was lecturing the Pawn.

Issei was in conflict with himself. He wanted to avenge his would-be slime familiar that had met its cruel demise from the sprite dragon, yet he couldn't go against Asia, who Issei thought of as a little sister. In the end, he reluctantly pulled his hand away from the infantile dragon and lamented over his inability to enact his retribution.

The sprite dragon then hopped from Asia's shoulder and into her arms. Asia petted the dragon's head while the tiny dragon itself nuzzled against her chest. Issei meanwhile fumed at how the sprite dragon was getting spoiled by the Bishop and its honesty with its affection.

"Umm, can I make this dragon my familiar?" Asia asks.

"I guess that depends on Issei. How about it, Issei?" Rias asked her Pawn.

The entire group shifted their eyes towards Issei. Issei soon became self-conscious with everyone looking at him. After cooling down from the slime's demise, he realized that he tried to take his anger out on the creature that stopped the slime from attacking Asia while he tried to protect it and leaving her vulnerable.

"Fine, if that's what she wants." Issei sighed out, defeated and ashamed. He started to shed tears of regret from being unable to avenge his fallen slime pervert brother.

**XXXXX**

Everyone stood around Asia, the girls fully clothed once again by their magic, as the Bishop stood in front of the sprite dragon as a green magic circle appeared beneath it and started to spin as she began to recite the words necessary for acquiring a Devil to acquire a familiar.

"In the name of A-Asia Argento, I order you! Y-You shall become my familiar and respond to my contract!" Asia chanted, though trying to sound confident in her execution, she couldn't help but stumble in her words a little. Nevertheless, the contract was complete.

The sprite dragon was on the ground in front of her with the rotating green magic circle underneath it. Its head bowed with its eyes closed as it recognized its new master. The magic circle disappeared as the dragon raised its head and flew right into Asia's arms, returning to her embrace and him nuzzling against her chest.

"Ufufu. Rassei, that tickles!" Asia giggled.

"Rassei?" Issei asked.

"Yes. He's a dragon that uses lightning and I also used your name too, Issei. Does it bother you?" she explained with trepidation that the Pawn would take offense.

_**"Oh, how cute! She named her familiar after her love!"**_ Morrigan commented on the Bishop's choice of epithets.

_**"Well, 'Rassei' will certainly help someone like her."**_ Izanami added her thoughts. _**"Though, I have to admit. That dragon really is cute."**_

"No, it's OK. Let's get along, Rassei." Issei approached the newly christened Rassei as he tried to bury the hatchet. The new familiar took notice of the Pawn's existence and immediately became annoyed.

**BUZZ! SHOCK SHOCK SHOCK SHOCK SHOCK SHOCK!**

"AGAGAGAGAGAHH!" Issei screamed out in agony as Rassei shot its lightning at the Devil, ending up in smoke and dropping to the ground while Rassei just went back to nuzzling against his new master. Sean couldn't help himself and burst into laughter at Issei's misfortune with the young draconic familiar.

"Oh, something you should know about these creatures. They hate other males! That's just one of their features." Zatouji belatedly explained to the charred Pawn.

"Rassei is such a naughty boy." Rias gave her thoughts on the sprite dragon.

Issei got up to his knees and cried out in frustration and remorse over his now departed slime brother. "Why does life have to be so unfair?! My dreams of stripping off girls' clothes have been ruined!"

"Will you shut up about that already?" Sean responded to his wailing with annoyance. He walked over to the downed Devil and yanked him off the ground by his collar.

Rassei turned his attention to the new male that had gotten close to his master. Angry that another male came into close quarters with his new master, his body started to electrify again. Sean heard the crackling of electricity coming from behind him and noticed that Rassei was about to do the same to him as he did with Issei.

_"Oh, I think not."_ Sean thought to himself as he activated the Power Stone. The human then blinked and his eye color changed to its alternative palette of black sclera and glowing purple irises. The human then stared down Rassei in a daring manner.

Rassei quickly became aware of the aura that the new male was exuding. Looking at the male's eyes, he saw power and felt an unnerving feeling swell up inside himself. The fear soon overwhelmed him, losing his electric coating and buried his head into Asia's chest to avoid the scary male's gaze.

"Harris, don't scare him like that!" Asia admonished the human as she hugged Rassei to try and get him to calm down. When she did, she felt that Rassei was shaking quite terribly.

"He was going to attack me, Asia. I wasn't going to hurt him, just setting the boundaries." Sean replied to the Bishop. Asia went back to petting Rassei while whispering calming assurances to try and soothe him out of his terror.

"RRRRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Everyone snapped to attention as a loud roar resonated from beyond the treeline of the forest. Sean, however, facepalmed as the noise he just heard was a familiar one.

"Ugh, so close." Sean groaned from having to deal with the source of the noise once again. He could practically hear Chronos rubbing in on how he told his host that he should've killed the monster.

"Harris, what do you know about this?" Rias questioned her "Pact Magician". Everyone else simply turned their sights toward the human as he faced them.

"Well, long story short, I went into a cave in the mountains and it turns out that it was the home of a minotaur." Sean briefly summarized his explanation.

Before anyone could make any kind of response, the sounds of cracking lumber and thuds of trees falling to the ground echo in the air. The noise soon got louder as the minotaur was advancing toward the group fast.

"Everyone, get ready!" Rias ordered to her peerage. The ORC members stood in the respective stances, ready to fight against the fast approaching beast. However, Sean held out his left arm with his Infinity Gauntlet on display.

"No, don't get in the way." Sean told the ORC. The Devils were surprised at his words, wondering why he would decline help.

"Harris, what are you-" the redheaded King asked the human before he interrupted her.

"This is happening because of me, therefore it's my responsibility to deal with. So, stay back while I fix my mistake." The Devils were hesitant to allow Sean to challenge a monster, like a minotaur, alone. The noises inside the forest were becoming thunderous and the beast's visage was becoming clearer as it was nearly upon them.

"Can you really win against something like that?" Rias inquired after sighing out in defeat.

Sean looked over his shoulder and smirked. "Yeah. It was a real pushover when I fought it last time. It won't be a problem." he assured the Devils. Rias could see that he was adamant about facing the bull-headed behemoth by himself.

"Very well. Everyone, stand down." Rias relented and ordered her peerage. Everyone else was still reluctant to let the human go through with the battle singlehandedly, but he didn't seem too worried. He was either confident or cocky, however they still relaxed their stances at the heed of their King.

The trees in front of the group were knocked down and the minotaur finally presented itself. Its eyes zoned in on the human that so casually decimated it and buried it underneath the stones of its home. It didn't emerge from it unscathed as there were bruises and blood trickling from various spots on its body.

The Devils craned their heads to look at the monster face-to-face. The more combat-ready peerage members were still tense and mentally ready to take up their respective arms, just in case Sean needed help. Asia, however, looked frightened by the sheer size of the creature and Rassei had a determined look in his eyes in defense of his master. But the human still wasn't worried about the bovine goliath that towered over the entire group.

"RAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" the beast bellowed in rage upon finally finding the source of its ire.

The Minotaur charged at Sean and raised its arm as it rushed towards its target. But Sean simply did nothing against the incoming enemy while the Power Stone glimmering. The Minotaur swung its arm and it connected, launching the human away, making him fly through the air and crashed through a tree. The dead foliage toppled down and crashed onto his body, burying him underneath.

But the beast didn't stop there as it rushed straight towards the downed human. Sean quickly removed the tree off of his body and got back on his feet. The Minotaur unleashed a flurry of punches at its prey, but Sean just swatted each of the slow yet powerful attacks off their course.

The group only watched the fight, seeing that the human easily handling himself against his larger opponent. They could see that he was getting annoyed by constantly deflecting the Minotaur's relentless barrage.

_"You weren't kidding, Thoth. This thing is real persistent." _Sean internally commented.

_**"Yes and it won't stop until one of you dies." **_the knowledge god informed his host.

_"Then let's get this over with."_

The Minotaur clasped its hands to gather to deliver the finishing blow. With another mighty roar, it swiftly brought its arms down upon Sean. The impact created a dust cloud around itself and blew away from the crater it created.

"HARRIS!" Rias screamed in worry for the human.

"WHAT?!" Sean yelled back, surprising the Devils. When the dust settled, everyone could see the Minotaur's arms still down but shaking as they were being held back by the human with ease. Sean pushed the monster off of him, making the beast flail its arms to regain its footing while Sean got back up on his feet.

The Minotaur found its balance and threw a punch in retaliation. Sean held his own arm up and blocked the attack. He swatted the Minotaur's reaching oversized hand away with a backhand slap and moved forward. He was quickly inside the giant creature's reach and let out a solid kick to the beasts knee. The beast's leg buckled from the hit and was forced down on one knee. Taking advantage of the opening, Sean wound his arm down and threw an uppercut at the bull-headed giant's chin.

The Minotaur was launched into the air and sent flying away from Sean. The flight didn't last long as the bovine/human creature landed on its back, resulting in a loud thud and a dust cloud emerging from around its body.

"Damn! Harris just knocked that thing right on its ass!" Issei exclaimed as he saw the human's quick work on the Minotaur.

The other Devils were equally impressed. Though, the only feat of strength they saw from Sean was the sole limb leftover from the Stray Devil Viser, it was still remarkable to see such power from a human.

The Minotaur got back up on its hooves and crouched down with the horns on its head pointed at the human. Sean groaned out in disappointment from the brute's lack of tactical variety. The savage creature suddenly charged toward its prey while Sean decided to take the initiative and made his own charge.

The two of them clashed, though it was in Sean's favor with him quickly grabbing the monster by the horns like before and its momentum suddenly slowed as the smaller human immediately began to push the oversized behemoth back. The minotaur's hooves were still planted in the dirt but dug trenches in the ground while Sean kept his hold on the bull. Afterwards, the human suddenly stopped and pulled on the Minotaur's horns, causing its body to be lose its footing once again and ended up face down on the ground.

With the monster off its feet, Sean moved to the side of the beast's head and released one of its horns only to take hold of the other with both hands. The Minotaur tried to pick itself up off the dirt, but Sean placed a foot on its neck and pushed it back down with his Power Stone-enhanced strength. The downed bull-headed behemoth tried to squirm its way out of the human's heel, but Sean just applied more pressure into the vulnerable vertebrae. The Minotaur grunted in pain and its struggling dissipated soon after.

Sean then moved his foot away from its neck and toward the base of the horn he was holding. He raised his leg and swiftly brought it back down. The Minotaur grunted in pain with the stomp but the human simply repeated his action. The second stomp caused some cracks to form on the surface and the grunts became groans. Sean lifted his leg while the Power Stone's glow intensified and stamped it once more.

SNAP

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" with the sound of breaking bone the Minotaur screamed in anguish as its horn was viciously broken from its head. Sean backed away from the beast, allowing it to roll around in agony while holding the stump that once was its horn.

Everyone watching the fight grimaced from the human removing the Minotaur's horn and the following roars of excruciating pain.

Well, almost everyone, Akeno had her own reaction from Sean's display of brutality. Her face became flushed as she licked her lips from the Minotaur's pained wails that Sean caused. Her eyes became lidded while she watched him continue his work on the beast.

Sean let the Minotaur wallow in its suffering over its most recent injury. He turned his attention to the horn he was holding and focused on the pointed end. He brought his right hand to the tip and pricked his index finger on it, causing it to bleed. Bringing his finger closer to his face, he licked the blood off and faced the Minotaur.

"I can see why you tried to stab me with this. It is pretty sharp." Sean commented as he gingerly walked around the monster's form and stopped at its head. The Minotaur took the human's remark as a taunt and tried to pick itself back up. But the human stomped down on the base of the beast's neck, pinning it in place.

"In fact, you could poke someone's eye out with this thing." Sean nonchalantly added as he held the broken horn in his hand. He quickly flipped the horn around in his hand with the pointed facing down while raising the horn as high as his arms could reach and brought it down quickly.

A large squelching sound was made when the horn found its mark: the minotaur's eye.

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" the Minotaur screamed from the pain of losing its eye. The shrieks only grew louder as Sean dug the horn deeper to cause more pain, but shallow enough to not break through the skull and pierce its brain.

"He's really not holding back, is he?" Kiba commented out loud.

"Brutal." Koneko added.

"I think I'll take my time with this guy. So better dial it back a bit with the strength." Sean said to himself out loud, much to the confusion of the Devils.

_**"I'm sure it'll be fun for you, Sean. I know it will be for me." **_Morrigan carried on her host's thoughts from within his mind.

The human wiped the blood of the sharp end of the horn with his shirt while looking disinterested at the hateful staring of the downed beast before him. The horn, now spotless, was held like a club by Sean. Without another word, he started bludgeoning the Minotaur's face with great force. However, he didn't stop there and continued his strikes.

Sean smiled with satisfaction all the while he bashed the Minotaur's skull in. The fresh blood from its injury splashed off its face and it splattered onto Sean's own face, which only made the smile on his face more disturbing to the Devils and Familiar Master.

"Isn't he taking it a little too far?" Issei asked, unnerved by Sean's savage treatment of the Minotaur. Asia only moved behind the Pawn in fright of the merciless beating.

"Mmm~ I wouldn't mind if he dragged it out a little more." Akeno purred with relish while she surreptitiously rubbed her thighs together.

Back with Sean, he was still beating on the Minotaur. Its body was twitching and rising from the ground with the force of each damaging strike to its skull as the human continued to cave it in. Sean soon had enough and with one final swing, the monster's body lifted off the ground and finally fell flat.

He dropped the broken horn on the ground and took a slow, deep breath of air and exhaled it in contentment. His smile was smaller from before and seemed to be more relaxed. "I really needed that." Sean sighed out."Needed what?" Rias asked the human as he walked away from the downed minotaur.

"To let off some steam. I've been feeling stressed lately and I needed to get all of that aggression out. It isn't good to bottle up all that anger inside, otherwise you might just snap." he explained, joining the Devil group once again.

"So you mellow out by beating somebody to death?!" Issei yelled in disbelief.

"Not really. I spared it the first time because I was intruding in its home. But it was just too stubborn for its own good, so I had to kill it to keep it from killing me. The stress relief was only secondary."

"Maybe I can show you other ways to relieve that stress. Ufufu~" Akeno suggestively teased the human. Sean couldn't believe that she could just say those kinds of things so casually.

"I have to say, that was quite a sight! I never thought a human could overwhelm a Minotaur's might!" Zatouji cheered.

"Thanks, but really it wasn't that difficult." Sean told the Familiar Master.

Unknown to the group, the minotaur was still breathing, albeit shallowly. As injured as it was with all of the damage to its head, it still managed to regain control over its own body. The dizziness was beginning to clear up as the goliath saw Sean with its one good eye. If it was the last it would do, it would kill that human!

The minotaur grunted loudly as it tried to stand back up, fighting through the pain of losing its eye. Everyone turned back around to see that the minotaur hadn't actually died. After what Sean did to it, they were amazed that it was still alive, let alone had the energy to move.

"It really is a tenacious one, isn't it?" Rias commented.

"Yeah, I wanted to drag it out a bit so I didn't go full strength. I guess I held back a little too much. Unfortunately for it, that's not going to happen this time." Sean explained.

The Power Stone began to shine even more brilliantly than before as he prepared himself for another fight. He already got his kicks from pummeling the beast with its own horn, so now he planned to put it out of its misery.

The minotaur tried to regain its footing and ended up on one knee. Sean himself walked over to the giant to put it out of its misery. The bovine beast wound its arm back while Sean did the same to deliver the final blow.

Just before the strike fell, a wave of harsh coldness washed over the area. The chills became evident very quickly as the Minotaur was suddenly flash-frozen. The beast was now nothing more than a giant ice cube.

Sean jumped back quickly as the Minotaur and the ground around it iced over with alarming speed, not wanting to join it in its fate. Except, the frost didn't travel past the Minotaur's body, it just stopped just right past its hooves, too controlled to be natural. Peering behind the frozen beast, Sean noticed the frost trailing toward the tree line.

"You can come out now!" Sean called out.

His call was heeded as the source of the frost began to move and, to Sean's surprise, it revealed itself to be the girl from the snowy mountains that he had met before. She poked her head out of the side of the tree she hid behind, but made no showing of emerging from it.

"Hello." the girl softly said.

"Hey. So you can talk." Sean replied. The girl only nodded in response.

"You don't have to hide behind that tree, you know. I told you that I mean no harm." The girl was reluctant to move, but chose to fully reveal herself from her hiding spot. Although, her hands were more like icy claws and hair seemed to be made of ice.

The Devils were curious about the new arrival or, in Issei's case, bewitched by how gorgeous the girl was. However, Asia took note of his not-so-subtle ogling and pinched his side, bringing him out of his revelry. Getting a closer look at her, Sean noticed that she had something poking out of her mouth.

"Oh! She's a member of the Yuki-Onna race! They use ice magic with style and grace!" Zatouji suddenly gave the girl an intro to the group in his usual rhyming speech.

"Harris, you know this girl?" Rias asked the human.

"Kind of, after I left on my own when we arrived, I went deep into the snowy mountains and heard the howling of wolves. I was curious and found that she was being chased by them. I killed the pack and checked on her, when she then told me she was fine and seeing no reason to remain, I left. I never thought she would actually follow me here." Sean explained before realizing something.

"I forgot that I never gave you my name. I'm Sean Harris."

The girl smiled meekly at the human. "I'm Mizore Shirayuki."

"Well, it's nice to actually meet you, Mizore." Mizore's face dusted a light pink when Sean used her name for the first time. "So why did you come all the way down here?" Sean queried.

Mizore crossed her right leg in front of her left. "It's just... I've never thanked you for saving me." she explained. "So, thank you."

"Oh. Well, you're welcome."

Mizore continued to smile, glad that she was able to find the kind human and thank him for his deed. "Um... could you please come with me?" she asked shyly.

Sean raised an eyebrow at her request. "To where?"

"My home, It isn't far from where we first met."

"Why?"

"After you helped me, I went back home. I told my mother about what happened and she wanted to thank you personally. So, I came down here to find you and bring you back home with me."

Sean crossed his arms in thought. It came as a surprise to him that a girl would invite him to her house, even if it was just for a thank-you from her mother. Still, she came all this way to get him; it would be rude to turn her down.

"Sure." Sean accepted. The girl smiled at his response. "But do we have time for that?" he asked Rias.

"Well, I'm sure there's time for one last stop. Is that right, Zatouji?" Rias questioned the Familiar Master. Zatouji checked his watch and looked back to the redheaded Devil with a smile and a cheesy thumbs-up.

"Great! Though I should probably go alone; it'll be much faster that way." the King looked toward her Queen. "Akeno, look after everyone while I'm gone."

Akeno smiled and nodded in understanding. "Yes, ma'am."

"I only asked him to come." Mizore argued to the redheaded Devil.

"I don't see how it would be a problem for me to accompany my adorable Pact Magician."

Sean could only look annoyed from Rias's reply. 'Seriously, she's getting way too used to saying that about me. Also 'Adorable' really?, what the hell does she think I am, a pet?'

Mizore narrowed her eyes slightly at Rias, miffed about the Devil's need to intrude in her business with Sean. Though if he really was her pact magician, she could put up with her. "Fine."

"Alright then, I'll take us there." Sean told the group. "Mizore, could you please come here for a second?" he beckoned the Yuki-Onna. Mizore obliged the human and gingerly approached him. Sean held out his hand and the Mind Stone started to glimmer.

"This might feel a little weird, but just stay calm and think about your home." Mizore nodded and Sean placed his hand on top of her head. The Yuki-Onna felt a strange sensation through her head as Sean began to see her home. A village made entirely out of ice.

After retrieving the image of Mizore's home, the human took his hand off of the Yuki-Onna's head and deactivated the Mind Stone. Mizore placed her hand on the side of her head, feeling the dizziness that followed from what had just happened.

"Don't worry, it won't last long." Sean assured the Yuki-Onna. Just as soon as he told her, the light-headedness she felt left her.

"Alright, let's get going." Sean started to prepare a portal to Mizore's village.

"Wait!" Issei called out to the trio while pointing towards the frozen Minotaur. "What about this thing?"

Sean rolled his eyes at the Pawn as he went over to the oversized popsicle. He looked around the ice-bound behemoth, circling around it for some reason, unknown to the others, until the human finally stopped right in front of its face. Using the Power Stone, Sean lifted his left hand and gave the minotaur's snout a small flick. The impacted point gained a few small cracks that traveled throughout its whole body and shattered into several frozen bloody pieces.

"Happy?" Sean inquired to Issei, looking disgusted with the pile of icy entrails that was once a Minotaur.

"No, not really." Issei squeaked out.

"Well, too bad. Now let's go already!" the human urged on Rias and Mizore as he actuated the Space Stone and conjured a portal which let out a frigid gust, making everyone shiver. Without any more delays, the human, Devil, and Yuki-Onna crossed through the portal and it shut behind them.

**XXXXX**

Sean emerged from the portal following Rias and Mizore. The Devil wasted no time in using her magic to change her clothes into an outfit more suitable to the freezing terrain. **(A/N: see the flashback with Kiba in episode 3 of DXD New)** Sean did the same and remade his garb from his last excursion in the snowy landscape.

The group stood on the edge of Mizore's home: a vast land with buildings made of ice that gleam from the light of the sky, which shone with an aurora. The human stopped to admire the beauty that the location gave.

_**"Oh! It's so beautiful here!"**_ Morrigan chimed.

_**"Right? Don't you think so, Izanami?"**_ Izanagi tried to make conversation with his wife. However, the Shinto goddess said nothing while turning away from him. The Shinto god could only sigh in defeat.

_**"Well, that's what happens when you perv on other women, Izanagi."**_ The male deity could only sulk at being snubbed by his wife.

Back in reality, Mizore was walking while her two followers hadn't moved since their arrival. She stopped and doubled back to them.

"Didn't you say that you were going to make this quick?" the Yuki-Onna reminded the two, snapping Sean out of their his awestruck stupor.

"Sorry. It's just your home seems quaint, compared to my home in the Underworld." Rias said, unaware that she blatantly insulted the Yuki-Onna, who narrowed her eyes in offense.

"Wow. You get taken to a beautiful place like this and the first thing you say is a brag about your own home?" Sean responded. Realizing her mistake, Rias threw her hands over her mouth in shock.

"Oh, I'm sorry! It's just a habit of mine. I've been trying to get over it since I started living in the human world." the Devil was quick to justify her apparent rudeness.

"Mhm. Still, this place _is _beautiful." Sean repeated his compliment to Mizore.

"Thanks." she replied with small smile after hearing Sean's praise of her home.

The trio started walking into the village with Mizore leading the way. Sean turned his gaze back towards the sky and admired the aurora that danced overhead. Looking around the village, he could see the inhabitants going about their lives. And as he surveyed, Sean could tell that the gender ratio of the place seemed to be in favor of women. From the children playing in the street to the elderly taking a stroll, the human couldn't see a single man anywhere.

"We're here." Mizore said, stopping in front of a traditional Japanese-style home. Sliding open the door, the three walked inside. Mizore took her _zori_ sandals off on the tatami mat while Sean and Rias were a little reluctant. "Is something wrong?"

"Yeah, do you think your mother would mind if we kept our shoes on? I mean, we could freeze our toes off." Sean asked.

"You can ask her for yourself." she looked over to the corner. Sean and Rias followed her line of sight to see a woman peeking from around the corner at the end of the hallway.

_"No doubt that must be her mother. Mizore really takes after her, huh?"_ Sean thought.

_**"You're not wrong."**_ Izanami agreed.

"It's okay to come out now, Mother. This is the guy I was telling you about." Mizore told her the woman while pointing to Sean.

"I see." The woman emerged her vantage point and approached the group.

She was a youthful and gorgeous woman with purple-silver hair, tied up in a bun with bangs that looked like Mizore's, and had the same kind of eyes as her daughter's, blue irises but with purple pupils instead of dark blue. She wore a white kimono with a purple _obi_ sash and _tabi_ white socks with black _zori_ sandals.

"I'm Mizore's mother, Tsurara Shirayuki." Tsurara smiled gently as she introduced herself properly. "So you're the one that saved my Mizore." Sean nodded in response. "I can't thank you enough for doing so." She bowed in gratitude to the human.

"It's alright. I'm Sean Harris, it's nice to meet you." Sean bowed to the older Yuki-Onna.

"Please, won't you come in and have something to drink?"

"I'm afraid we can't stay for long." Rias spoke for the first time, denying Tsurara's invitation.

"Oh, forgive me. I didn't realize that you were here, miss...?"

"I am Rias Gremory, the next head of the Gremory Household." Sean rolled his eyes at the inroductory résumé Rias gave.

Tsurara looked shocked. "Oh my! I never thought that a Devil noble would enter my home. It's an honor to have you here." she bowed to Rias.

"Thank you. But as I said, my Pact Magician and I are here with the rest of my peerage to acquire familiars. And we don't much time until we must leave."

"I see. So can you come with me to have a small talk with you and Sean?"

"Very well, then." Rias assented.

"Thank you, ma'am. Please follow me." Tsurara lead them further inside into the living room. Everyone sat at the table with a bowl that was filled with lollipops as the centerpiece in the center of the room; Mizore sat next to Tsurara while Sean sat next to Rias.

"I must say Mizore, Sean seems to be more handsome than how you described him to be." Tsurara "broke the ice" by commenting on Sean's looks.

"Mother..." Mizore softly whined in embarrassment. Sean, on the other hand, blinked at the sudden compliment he received from her.

"Uh... thank you." Sean fumbled a bit with his words. Tsurara only giggled at the human's response.

"Since you're both pressed for time, I'll be brief. You mentioned that you were looking for familiars for your peerage, correct?"

Rias nodded. "Yes, that's right."

"Well, I know this might seem sudden for everyone. But since Mizore has taken a liking to Sean, why not have her become his familiar?" Sean was taken back once again by Tsurara.

"Wait, you would offer your daughter up as a familiar?"

"Well, it's just that she couldn't stop talking about the heroic boy that saved her from those wolves. If you're looking for familiars, then why not Mizore?"

"Mother, please stop!" Mizore pleaded to Tsurara a little louder yet still softly.

"But to someone that she hardly knows?" Sean asked, wondering why she would even consider her proposal.

"Normally, I wouldn't think of doing something like this. But after hearing what you did for her, I feel that I can trust you with her safety."

Sean had never expected this turn of events. He only came to the Familiar Forest on a whim and separated from the group after hearing Zatouji's rhyming talk. It was only through mere coincidence that he found Mizore running for her life during his expedition. He had no intention of acquiring a familiar of his own. Yet here he was, being offered a familiar in the form of the very girl he saved.

"There _is_ another reason why I'm doing this." Tsurara added.

"And what's that?" Sean wondered.

"I'm sure you've both noticed that the majority of the village's population is female."

"Yes, I could see a lot of women, but no men. At least, none that I could see." Rias concurred.

"That's because Yuki-Onnas only give birth to daughters. Normally, we seek out our partners out in the human world. But during the warmer months, we come here to protect ourselves from the heat." Tsurara explained. "We also have a very short span of fertility, so we tend to have our children at a fairly young age."

"So I would be grateful to you for not only accepting my daughter as your familiar, but also getting it on with her."

For a few seconds, Sean's brain had suddenly stopped. He just kept looking at Tsurara, thinking she was about to laugh what she said off as a joke. But she just sat there with a closed-eyed smile directed at the human. Mizore was silent throughout the awkward silence that followed. Rias, while also silent, seemed to have a depressing aura after hearing the rest of Tsurara's proposal.

_**"Well, there's an offer you don't get everyday."**_ Morrigan giggled.

_**"WHAT ARE YOU JUST SITTING THERE FOR, SEAN?! SAY YES, SAY YES, SAY YES!"**_ Izanagi shouted frantically in Sean's mind. The human put a hand on his forehead and grimaced from his headache.

"Are you alright, dear?" Tsurara asked in worry.

"Yeah, it's just a headache. It happens sometimes." Sean quelled the Yuki-Onna mother's concerns. Rubbing his head for a bit, the pain soon passed and all he could hear was Izanagi's muffled screams until the connection was suddenly cut. Focusing back to the situation, Sean sighed in relief.

"Alright. Well, that is certainly unexpected. On a few different levels, actually."

"Really?"

"Yes. The most prominent is the part where you just gave me permission to have sex with your daughter, unless I misheard you."

"No, you heard right." she replied simply.

"I thought I did. But the other, more relevant, part is that I didn't think I would even have been offered to get a familiar at all."

"Really? I thought that's why you both came here to the Familiar Forest."

"It is. But I never intended to get a familiar for myself. I'm just Rias's... Pact Magician. A ride-along, if nothing else." The bad taste in Sean's mouth came back by the mere mention of his "status".

"Actually, there's nothing that says that Pact Magicians can't have familiars." Rias chimed in.

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I don't see why I wouldn't let my adorable Pact Magician to have a familiar of his own." Sean's eyebrow twitched as Rias called him "adorable" once again.

"I think you should accept; having a familiar can be quite beneficial for their masters." Sean gave the redhead a flat look.

"The way you say that makes it sound like I'm acquiring a slave." he said flatly.

"It's nothing like that! As far as Devils and their familiars go, their main purpose is usually being messengers or just doing odd jobs and janitorial work."

"You're not making your argument any more convincing to me."

"I don't mind." Sean and Rias looked over to Mizore who spoke up. "I don't care if I have to do that kind of work."

"You would really go along with this?" Sean asked with surprise. Mizore shook her head in denial.

"I'm not just 'going along with this'. I actually want to go with you." she confessed meekly. Sean scratched the back of his head, confused about what the younger Yuki-Onna had just said.

The human never liked the idea of being under someone's thumb and he didn't like anyone else to experience something like that. While it was a bit of an eye-opener that Mizore would actually consent to being a familiar, Sean still didn't like taking someone as a servant.

But then he thought about his current situation with the Fallen Angels. While they were behaving themselves for the time being, he couldn't keep his guard up forever around them. He wasn't too worried about Raynare; she wouldn't risk getting on Azazel's bad side again. And Mittelt was so terrified of him that she would run and hide if she even heard he was coming her way.

The real problem was Kalawarner. She made her distrust towards Sean known right from the get-go. Sean didn't know if she would go so far as to try and kill him again, despite her previous failures. But from what he could tell from his encounters, she seemed like the persistent type.

Sean nodded to himself after reaching his decision. "Alright. I accept."

Tsurara and Mizore smiled. "Wonderful! I'm sure you two will be perfect for each other!"

"But I'm not accepting her as my familiar." Sean's addition only served to confuse the Yuki-Onnas.

"I'm afraid I don't understand."

"I mentioned before that I don't like the idea of having servants. But I wouldn't mind having someone help me out with a problem that I've been dealing with lately."

"If you're having trouble with something, you could've just asked me." Rias told Sean.

"Yeah, but I usually deal with things on my own. And I'm sure you're busy handling other things you have on your plate." he replied, playing along with the charade.

"Don't be silly. I always make time to help my servants whenever they need it."

"Well, it's nice of you to offer. But with Mizore's help, I'm sure we'll get this taken care of." Sean assured his "master". Mizore's smile came back from hearing Sean's confidence in her.

The "Pact Magician" faced Tsurara. "So, I will accept Mizore. But she'll be considered my "ally", instead of my "familiar".

Tsurara nodded, still smiling at Sean's logic. "Thank you very much for doing this. It helps ease my mind knowing that Mizore won't be treated as a servant. Though, I hope you'll consider her more than just an ally."

Sean laughed nervously from the mature Yuki-Onna's implication and turned to Mizore. "So Mizore, I hope we get along." Mizore nodded at his sentiment.

"Mizore dear, you should go pack your things." Tsurara said to her daughter. Mizore stood up and walked out of the room.

"I do have a question, though. If you come down to the Familiar Forest to wait out until winter, then is there anything that can help her stay cool?"

"Oh, that won't be a problem." Tsurara stood up and left the room for a moment. She reached into the bowl and grabbed one of the lollipops in it.

"These are made with a special frost that help keep our bodies cold from the outside heat. As long as Mizore has one of these, she'll be fine." she explained while holding up one of the candies.

"Great, that's a load off my mind." Sean replied, relieved that he wasn't going to put Mizore in danger.

"I should go help Mizore with her packing." Tsurara said while she looked off toward the room's exit. "I'm sure we've taken up enough of your time." Rias and Sean nodded in response as Tsurara bowed to the pair and left to aid her daughter.

"They seem very civil." Rias gave her thoughts about the Yuki-Onna to Sean.

"Yeah, they do. Seriously never thought that _I _would get a familiar." Sean agreed.

"So what's this thing that you needed help with?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business." Sean deflected the question. Rias was a little taken back by the human's sudden defensive behavior.

"You don't need to be that way. I'm just trying to help. After everything you've done back at the church, I felt like I need to repay you somehow." Rias pouted.

"Like I said, I can deal with my own problems. And by the way, you seem to be a little too comfortable with referring me as your Pact Magician."

"I was just playing the part. It's not like we can just say you're a unaffiliated human following me."

"I get that. It just seems like you have this satisfied tone whenever you mention that, even if it isn't true."

"No, I wasn't! I told you, I was playing the part."

"By calling me 'adorable'?"

"What's wrong with that? I call every one of my servants 'adorable' sometimes."

"I'm sure you do. But when you call me that, it sounds like you think of me as a pet."

"I told you before, the Gremorys always treat their servants like family."

"And there it is! No one who treats someone like family would ever call them servants. You would call Akeno, Koneko, and Asia your sisters, Kiba your brother, and I don't know about Issei since he wants to grope you. But you don't." Rias was about to retort when Tsurara and Mizore entered the room carrying Mizore's luggage.

"Alright, everything is in order." Tsurara told them. She then noticed the tension in the room surrounding Rias and Sean. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, everything's fine." Rias assured the Yuki-Onna.

"Well, then. I leave Mizore in your care, Harris."

"I'll be sure to take care of her, ma'am. And you can call me Sean, I was never a fan of formalities."

"Very well, Sean. I hope that you and Mizore will get along quite well." Tsurara then looked towards Mizore. "And Mizore dear, I hope to expect a grandchild to spoil soon." Mizore only nodded as Tsurara hugged her goodbye while Sean picked up some of Mizore's luggage.

Everyone went outside for the sendoff. Mizore unwrapped one of the cooling lollipops and placed it in her mouth. Sean set the piece of luggage he carried in his left hand down and waved it to create a portal back to the group with the Space Stone. Mizore looked back to her mother.

"Goodbye, Mother."

"Goodbye, Mizore. Come and visit soon, OK?" Tsurara waved to her daughter. Mizore nodded and the three of them walked through the portal.

Sean and Rias emerged from the other end of the portal with Mizore following right behind them. They see the rest of the ORC that have been waiting patiently for their return.

"Welcome back, Miss President." Akeno greeted her King.

"Thank you, Akeno. Was there any trouble while we were gone?" Rias asked. The Queen shook her head in response.

"No, ma'am. Everything's fine."

"Very good. Well Zatouji, we'll be heading home now."

"Nice having you here, Miss Gremory! See you around!" The Familiar Master replied. Sean stopped himself from creating another portal at what he just heard.

"Hey! That wasn't a rhyme!" he pointed out.

"What? I don't do it all the time." Zatouji shrugged while making another rhyme from Sean's indication, causing the human's eyebrow to twitch in annoyance. Some of the others laughed from the human's situation while Sean himself wondered if the Familiar Master did it on purpose.

"Let's just go." Sean sighed out as he waved his Infinity Gauntlet while the Space Stone glowed to conjure a portal back to the ORC clubhouse. One by one, the Devils went through the spatial gate until finally Sean and Mizore went through and the magic passage closed.

**XXXXX**

"Mizore, this is my Queen, Akeno Himejima." Rias started to introduce her peerage to the Yuki-Onna with the Queen giving her a bow.

"My Knight, Kiba Yuuto." The blonde Knight replied with his own bow.

"My Rook, Koneko Toujou." The Rook only nodded.

"My Bishop, Asia Argento."

"Hello! It's nice to meet you!" The former nun smiled sweetly.

"And this is my Pawn, Issei Hyoudou." The Pawn just waved at the girl.

"I'm Mizore Shirayuki." she introduced herself to the rest of the group and bowed in greetings.

"What's with all the luggage?" Issei asked, taking note of the bags in Mizore and Sean's hands.

"Well, long story short, Mizore is technically my familiar now and she's going to be living with me." Sean summed up. Issei's mouth suddenly dropped right off his jaw after hearing that. He then dropped to his hands and knees with an aura of despair over him.

"It's not fair! Not only did you threw away the perfect familiar for me, but now you get one? And a cute girl too!" Issei cried out in jealousy.

"Ara ara~. She's moving in with you? You two move fast, don't you?" Akeno teased Sean.

_"You have no idea."_ the human thought, remembering what Tsurara asked of him.

"What do you mean by 'technically'?" Kiba asked.

"I didn't do the whole recital thing that Asia did with Rassei, so she's not really an 'official' familiar. Plus, just like I don't like the idea of being a servant, I don't want to have servants either." Sean clarified. He then yawns in drowsiness while covering his mouth.

"Aaah~! Now that that's all done, I'm gonna go home. Feel like I'm gonna drop. Let's go, Mizore." The Yuki-Onna nods and the two exited out the door. Sean then materialized one last portal that led to his home and they crossed into it.

With the portal disappearing, Mizore looked in awe at the sheer size of her master's abode. She craned her head up to see the apex of the building and when she did, she felt like she was going to lose her balance. Luckily, she righted herself before falling backward.

Sean approached the front door but stopped and turned to Mizore. "I just want to let you know that I'm not the only one that lives here. And this is the reason why I decided to accept you as my familiar. There are three Fallen Angels in there that have caused trouble here recently and I need someone that I can trust to watch over them to see if they're up to anything bad. Think you can do that?"

Mizore nodded at Sean with a barely distinguishable look of determination on her face. "They won't even know I'm there."

"I don't doubt it. So welcome to your new home." Sean told his new housemate and ally, spreading his arms to showcase her new abode.

He opened the door and went inside with Mizore following behind him while she admired the interior of Sean's home. As they went toward the stairs, strange sounds could be heard through the foyer. They were soft but noticeable. Sean focused his hearing on them and they sounded like they were coming from the living room.

He went to see what the source of the noises were and as he did, the sounds were more coherent. They sounded like smacking and, if he heard right, a little moaning. Sean raised an eyebrow at them but continued on until he stood behind the couch where the noises seemed to be originating from.

The sight of the source made him raise his eyebrows in surprise as he stumbled upon Kalawarner and Raynare lying on the couch, making out with Raynare underneath Kalawarner. Sean's presence seemed to go unnoticed as the two Fallen women were too engrossed by their passionate embrace. They broke their tender liplock and Kalawarner quickly started giving Raynare love bites on her neck while caressing her side and sliding her hand to grab at her breast.

"Ahh~!" Raynare moaned out with her eyes clenched shut, feeling Kalawarner hitting all of her sensitive spots.

Sean's face started to heat up from seeing the erotic display that the Fallen Angels put on. He did feel a little awkward intruding on their session, but the show was hypnotic to the human.

_**"OH YES! That's what I'm talking about!"**_ Izanagi shouted with perverted joy. _**"This is the kind of thing you're missing out on, Sean! A little advice from me and that could be your- HMPH-HMM-HMM-HMPH"**_ the Shinto god's ranting became mumbled after Izanami put her hand over her lecherous husband's mouth.

The sudden exclamation jolted Sean out of his daze and shook his head to shake the cobwebs off. He decided to put an end to this before it got any more awkward. He lifted his arms which carried Mizore's luggage until they were straight out and dropped the suitcases to the ground.

**BAM**

The abrupt sound caused the Fallen Angels to sit up from their positions and they finally noticed that they weren't alone. Kalawarner glared at Sean for interrupting them while Raynare looked away, embarrassed.

"You really know how to kill the mood." Kalawarner annoyedly said, standing up off the couch. Raynare doing the same while smoothing out her casual attire of a purple T-shirt and black capris.

"Well, next time, how about doing that in your own rooms instead of the couch?" Sean riposted to the bluenette. She just scoffed but then noticed Mizore standing behind him.

"And who's that?"

"This is Mizore; she's my new familiar and she's going to be living here." Mizore gave a formal bow to the two Fallen Angels. Raynare returned the bow while Kalawarner just sized her up.

"Well Mizore, all I can tell you is that you could've gotten a better master than this little shit." Mizore glared at the malicious Fallen Angel for insulting her new master. Sean was about to retort when he let out another yawn.

"Forget it. I don't have the energy to deal with you right now." the human waved off. Picking up Mizore's luggage off the floor, he started to leave the living room. "C'mon Mizore, I'll show you to your new room." The Yuki-Onna gave Kalawarner one last glare before joining her new master.

"Hope you enjoyed the show, you little perv! Because that's the closest you're gonna get to a real woman." she called out, but Sean just ignored her and went up the stairs.

"Kala!" Raynare chastised to her fellow Fallen.

Sean and Mizore reached the top of the stairs and went down the hallway. They soon reached a door and Sean opened it to reveal a mostly empty bedroom with a bed and closet. The two entered the room and placed the luggage next to the foot of the bed.

"Well, here's your new room." Sean told Mizore. "I'll make you some furniture later, but for now, my bed is calling out to me."

"Who were those women?" Mizore asked.

"The blue-haired one is Kalawarner and the black-haired one is Raynare. There is one more named Mittelt, but I guess she's sleeping."

"That Kalawarner is a bitch." she flatly commented.

Sean snickered at the tone she used. "Yeah, she's been like that since we first met. She's probably just mad that I beat her in the fights we've been in."

"So they're all women?"

"Yeah. They're here because of a sentence of probation and I'm watching over them because I saved them from being killed by the Devils."

"How long will they be here?" Sean shrugged in response.

"Hard to say. Their leader, Azazel, didn't really give me a definite date. I guess whenever he believes that they can behave themselves." The human then clapped his hands after his explanation.

"But enough about that. I'll do the furniture tomorrow, but I need to set up some kinda supercharged A/C unit so you don't have to worry about the heat and insulate the door so the cold can stay in here." Sean waved the Infinity Gauntlet, Reality Gauntlet glistening, on the door and the top and bottom grew insulation strips that covered the gaps.

"Give me a second." Sean then used the Space Stone to make a small portal floating horizontally in front of him. He sticks his arm down and pulls out his backpack with the portal vanishing afterward. He unzips the bag open and pulls the flaps apart.

"OK, this'll probably take all the dirt I have in there. But it's dirt; not like there's a shortage of that stuff." Sean commented. He went to open the window and stuck his Gauntlet out towards the backpack. The Reality Stone shined once more as the dirt began to flow out as wispy tendrils and flew towards the opening of the window.

The soil soon became rigid and metallic as it formed inside the gap. It all came together and finally created a window A/C unit. Sean let his hand down and brushed them both together, mock-dusting them off after a job well done.

"There you go. I modified this unit to refrigerate this room so it'll be as if it was a cold winter. So you should be good to go for now." Sean said with Mizore only nodding in response.

"You're not much of a talker, are you?" She blushed in shyness. The human just chuckled.

"It's alright. I just hope that you'll be comfortable here. See you in the morning." Sean said his farewell while making one last portal to his bedroom.

After that, Sean felt so exhausted from his trip to the Familiar Forest and the overuse of the Infinity Gauntlet that he just decided to go right to sleep. Shedding off his clothes, he promptly dropped onto the large bed and in no time, he was out for the night.

**Alright! Another chapter done!**

**Now, it's time for the serious shit to go down.**

**As some of you are aware, the notifications for mobile PMs are down. And I know for a fact that this has affected plenty of other authors on FF. SO I NEED YOUR HELP!**

**I only ask that you send emails to the support section of FF or tweet it to FictionPress. For authors, I would like for you to pass this message along in your updates. Because teamwork makes the dream work!**

**Plus, on a personal note, this situation has completely hindered my progress on writing this story because I haven't heard from my editor, Yami-Guy, and one of my beta-readers, BrxkenArrow. And without their help, who knows how long it will take to get the next chapter up!**

**Another thing, I know I just said about posting another chapter for this story up. But I've decided to take a break from writing this story to not only do some revisions on it. NO, THIS DOESN'T MEAN I'M WRITING IT ALL OVER AGAIN! But I'm also going to focus my attention on Same Dream, New Life.**

**It's been way too long since I've done any kind of work on it and I have tons of ideas on its future. But I'm also going to revise that story too. Because after re-reading it, it just seems like one hot mess!**

**One last thing, if anyone is interested in helping me with either of my stories, then message me on Discord. My name and tag are on my profile page.**

**That is all! So anyway, you all know what to do!**

**Follow/Fav/Review**

**See you all next time!**


	13. Restart

**Oh man! You guys are gonna hate me for this!**

**I feel like I'm starting to fuck this story up. I've been playing this story too close to the ear and it's crashing down soon.**

**Mostly because I wanted to portray Sean as a loner. The Fallen women were... eh, because Sean's hands were tied and he didn't want to waste his hard work keeping them alive for nothing. And it was the only real change in the first arc.**

**But recruiting Mizore during the Familiar Forest was the nail in the coffin. She's my favorite girl from Rosario+Vampire and I did have plans for her. But realized that it was too early to bring her in with Sean's current personality.**

**I honestly felt like giving up, not only in this story, but writing in general. With Same Dream, New Life being FUBAR because I couldn't figure out the plot anymore and now this, it was a real blow to my self-esteem as a writer. But I know this story has potential. You all have suh high hopes for it that I couldn't just walk away from it.**

**That's why I decided to step back from Infinity DxD and start again. I know I said this about Same Dream, New Life, but I don't want to give up on this one. I invested too much into its future and have a lot of great ideas for Sean to be completely OP.**

**I just need to put more thought into the story and try to figure out how I can make it right.**

**I've already have a timline established, but now that I have found how to read the LNs, I feel like I can get a better picture of it.**

**So I'm sorry to say that this story is officially being rewritten.**

**As for Same Dream, New Life, I might just put it up for adoption. I honestly lost most of my motivation for it and interest in My Hero Academia. It was a nice thought, but I think it's time to end it.**

**I apologize for disappointing you all and hope that you might read the rewrite when I get some traction.**

**See you guys later.**


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